Tale of Two brothers
by xSilence
Summary: Before the Turks before Organization XIII, there were two brothers. This is a prequel to something much bigger, the fate of two red heads collide in an adventure so big only their love as brothers will hold them together. Language, violence. Axel and Reno
1. Scars

It was getting chilly in the dying sun, the autumn frosts would arrive soon and damn it, he hadn't managed to 'commander' a new jacket for himself yet.

One by one the street lamps flickered their sickly iridescent glow, attempting to light the desolate roads. Broken hollow shells of what were once known as houses lined the sidewalk, the glass of the windows (if they weren't broken) was caked in a thick layer of uncleanable grime.

With a reproachful sigh the young man slunk through the shadows of Sector five, making sure to keep his sharp green eyes alert. With a cautioned movement he lifted the plastic bag he carried up to his shoulders and tucked it securely between his chest and tattered sweater which was three sizes too big. There were worse things then ravenous dogs that haunted these streets. He knew all too well if the scent of his parcel was picked up…

Well, he didn't _want_ to think about it, really. In the slums it was survival of the fittest, or the dirtiest fighter. Lea found himself leaning to the secondary option most of the time. He wasn't the tallest, or biggest of, well, anything really.

But he was a "mother fucking genius", he smirked, quoting his self description. The young Maero could con anyone out of their high prized dollar. He was a smooth talking, scheming little punk. At age five, he had started with petty theft, at seven, he had taught himself some useful 'magic tricks' with a pack of cards he'd found in the men's room of the subway station, and at nine, he had mastered the art of conversation (despite his horrid use of slang). And now, at age eleven, Lea had become a pro of all the 'underground trades' and lead a self sufficient life as a hooligan who made his way by the means of taking what he needed. He had to be good, if he wanted to survive.

But even pro's have their strokes of bad luck.

Shit. That was the only way to describe his day. Pure and utter _shit. _He found himself clutching the small amount of Gil in his pocket, afraid it might slip through the hole he hadn't to sewn up yet.

Today hadn't been as productive as he had originally intended. This time of year was always hard, people saved what little money they had so they could use their heaters. He couldn't really blame them for that, it just made his wheeling and dealing a bit more difficult.

Lea ran the cool fingers of his other hand through the mesh of red spikes, trying to keep the delicate hair from tangling. It was always a bitch to brush out.

Especially when you had a comb with only seven teeth on it. Sigh.

The eleven year old paused for a moment and stood on the protruding metal rail of the train tracks. He turned his gaze back over his shoulder at the glorious white obelisk of the Shinra building.

"FUCKER!" he snarled at the top of his lungs while shaking an angry fist "I'm going to get you, asshole! Do you hear me up there in 'yer tower?! I'm going to fucking _get_ you!"

With an angry snort Lea whipped his back to the taunting high rise. The very thought of that bastard sitting on his throne while people suffered, it rubbed him everyway but right. Of course, he had no idea how he would get him. Maybe he'd egg his precious car. Lea smirked, he'd willing go without eating for a few days if it meant ruining that glossy paint.

"Hey, punk" a gruff voice shook him out of his vengeful thoughts. A large hand descended his shoulder and whipped him around "Whatcha' hidin' there?"

"Bar of soap" Lea replied flippantly, raising a red brow "Not that someone with such amazin' hygienic standards such as yerself have heard of such a thing" he stuck his tongue out while crinkling his nose in an exaggerated expression.

The man narrowed his eyes in an frustrated aggression, the wrinkles etched on what should have been a young face reflected the harshness of life in the slums. Lea scolded himself (briefly) for being so damn _hilarious_, some people just couldn't take a joke.

"Like _you_ smell any better, you little fucktard" another voice snarled. Ah, so the idiot had an accomplice. Lovely, just fucking lovely, Lea sighed

"Come on fellas, you wouldn't heckle a little kid now would ya'?" the red head attempted "Just lemme go, yo, and we can pretend this never happened" in what he hoped was a peaceful gesture, Lea held his hands out, flat, and attempted to back away from the first man who held a firm grip on his collar.

"Unless you hand over that bag you've got stuffed in your shirt, you wont be going anywhere ever again" the second man sneered, pressing the cold edge of a blade to Lea's throat."Life's hard on this side of the tracks, kid, now hand it over!

"Guys—" Lea attempted once more.

"Hand it over!!" the first man demanded, giving him a good shake.

By now Lea had lost his patience "Hey, ya know what? Fuck you!" he dropped down out of his sweater. After securing the bag beneath his arm he lunged forward, head butting the first man in the crotch.

His captor shrieked in agony before flopping over like a pathetic doll. Before the second, armed man could react Lea brought his foot up to kick him in the same area, causing him great amounts of pain.

Soon as the armed man dropped to the ground Lea sprang up to grab the discarded knife, as well as his sweater. "That'll teach ya'bitches!" he cackled, darting away from the scene. Who did those assholes think they were? Both sides of the track looked pretty shitty to him.

Lea took great care in covering his tracks, literally, to make sure those two assholes didn't follow him home. People in the slums could be vengeful, he didn't need them taking their anger out on someone undeserving. He climbed the ladder of a stationary train car and stood on the roof.

The red head peered around. Across from him he saw what appeared to be a halfway stable fence. For a moment he stared it, willing his brain to make some sort of connection. Ah ha! Jump!

"Whoo hoo!" he grinned madly with a mighty leap of faith. Lea grabbed the top of the fence and pulled himself up. "Hehe, bastards, don't be messin' with Lea Maero" he chuckled to himself.

Carefully he lowered himself down from the fence, making sure to keep the parcel close to him. He couldn't afford to lose it. Lea allowed himself to grin in hopeful optimism:

"Maybe tonight will bet—" BOOM. Lightening cracked the sky. In a matter of seconds the boy was not only cold, but drenched "Great" he muttered "Just fuckin' great"

Lea pulled the large sweater over his head while hastily picking up his pace. Last thing he needd was to get sick. Couldn't afford it, someone depended on him.

His 'home' quickly came into vision, Lea narrowed his eyes. From inside the crumbling walls, sounds of violence resonated in drunken rage. They were fighting again. That was much was evident by the slew of curses and flying bottles.

With a roll of his eyes Lea bounced up the concrete steps of his porch and carefully opened the door.

"You fucking whore!" snarled a haggard looking male, his shaggy and matted red hair clung to his scalp like a beanie, he hadn't washed it in…who could even _remember?_.

"Freeloading asshole!" a woman snarled back, her sunken face twisted in rage. Furiously she snatched a half empty liquor off the coffee table. With all her mighty she threw it at the older man.

"Whoa!" Lea ducked when he entered. God_damn_, what a way to come home, having a bottle chucked at your head. Although, given the situation, he concluded it hadn't been deliberately thrown at him_, this_ time.

"Way to go, Vivian! Impale the goddamn kid why dontcha!?" the man scolded.

"Like you give a damn Snyder!" the woman, Vivian, Lea's mother countered hotly "Don't start playing the loving father part now, you asshole!"

"You ain't exactly mother of the fucking year!" Snyder retorted. The alcohol burning through his veins made Snyder's already hot temper unsteady, he lunged and gave Vivian a violent shove. "If ya kill him that _other_ one would never shut the hell up! Constantly crying the little pansy!"

At his Snyder's remark Lea's eyes darkened. "Don't you talk about him like that!" he nearly screamed "Don't you ever talk about him like that again, I'll kill you!"

Vivian caught her balance on the kitchen table just in time to witness her husband lift the glass chimney off of her favorite kerosene lamp.

Lea saw it too. The eleven year old tried to scramble backwards, but his legs weren't tall enough to match his father's long stride. Snyder swung and the glass connected, shattered, across Lea's face. The youngest red head fell back on his rear.

"Goddamn! Snyder! That was my favorite lamp!" Vivian hissed. She turned briefly to Lea "Don't bleed all over my rug!"

While Lea sat on the floor, the two adults engaged in another battle, this time about breaking the few possessions they owned. Groggily the boy pulled himself to his feet, goddamn it, now his entire face hurt.

Muttering a brief 'fuck you' under his breath, Lea grabbed the bag he had been carrying and slunk up down the hall. He entered the 'bathroom' (he used the term useless, there was no bath, or even a functioning sink) and stood in front of the cracked mirror. Slowly, Lea began to pluck the shards of glass from his skin. One particular piece had gouged him rather deep, when he removed it, he noticed the triangle mark left beneath his eye, it was going to leave an awful scar.

Great. Just what he needed. "I'm going to look like a fucking clown" he snorted in distaste. Lea pressed a compress to the wound to try and quench the bleeding, never taking his eyes off of his broken reflection in the mirror.

A few minor cuts and bruises etched his face in angry, red welts, heat rushed to the wounds. Slowly he pulled the compress away, observing the very clean, straight shape of the triangle. Hmm. An idea began to take shape.

Glancing down at the piece of glass responsible for the mark, Lea picked it up off the counter and held it between his finger tips. Almost admiringly he glanced down at the shard, twisting it in his finger tips. On his unscathed cheek he measured where it would have been, if it were symmetrical to the bleeding triangle under his right eye.

Taking a deep breath he impaled the glass into his flesh, leaving a nearly identical mark. He pressed harder, and once he was sure it had gone deep enough Lea removed the glass and held the compress to his self inflicted wound.

Fuck being a clown, he thought once he removed the compress to observe his handiwork. In all honesty he had no idea why he just left an unnecessary mark on himself. Perhaps he didn't want to give his 'parents' the satisfaction of knowing how it had hurt, and how he had taken it as his own.

What the hell ever. It didn't matter.

Discarding the compress and the shard Lea silently slunk out of the bathroom, not giving a damn if his 'parents' killed each other. They were still fighting, of course.

At the end of the hall Lea pushed the door open "Yo?" he blinked poking his head in before entering. The young man felt his heart start to thump, the room was empty. "Bro??" he asked again, this time a little louder.

"Mfft!" came a muffled cry from the closet, accompanied by a sudden desperate pounding beyond the door "In here Lea!"

"Reno!" Lea gasped. He dashed over to the closet, finding that had been locked. Who the hell put locks on closet doors anyway?

Oh, right. Asshole parents did.

He jiggled the knob in vain. "Reno, back up" Lea instructed. He heard the light steps of his younger brother.

"Ok I'm back, yo!" Reno called back.

"Cover your face!" the older boy commanded. He brought his leg up to fiercely kick the door. Once, twice, three times, splintering the wood to the point where he simply ripped the knob out. Lea immediately dropped down to a crouch and opened his arms. "What're ya doin in here?" he asked.

"T-they put me in here" replied the younger child, trying to fight back a sniffle. Reno dashed into Lea's embrace, his tiny arms clinging as much as possible around the neck of his older brother "You were gone a long time, I got scared..."

"Nah, no reason to be scared, a'ight?" Lea murmured giving Reno a loving nuzzle "It's cool now."

"O-ok, yo.." Reno sniffled. He pulled away to rub his small blue eyes. When he glanced up he gasped "Lea! Your bleedin'! What happened to your face?!" the little one gasped, hastily using his shirt to wipe away the streaks of blood running down his brother's cheeks.

"Oh this? Nah, it ain't nuthin" Lea mused but allowed Reno to clean his cheeks "Hey, hungry?" Duh. That was the world's dumbest question.

"Starved, yo!" Reno nodded swiftly, the wild red spikes of his hair flaying madly.

"I thought so" the older boy grinned. Gently he scooped Reno up in one arm and set him down on their 'bed', which consisted of the world's crappiest piece of foam and a sheet. Eagerly but patient, Reno sat and waited. Lea set down the plastic bag he had so valiantly guarded and pulled from it's contents a foam take out container. He suppressed a grin at Reno's wide eyes "Here, eat up. It's from that fancy place in Sector two. Some chump had thought he could leave the his lunch unattended while he paid the bill, sucker "

Without a second invitation the little one took the box and opened it. He practically drooled at the sight of the half eaten sandwich and sparse fries, which he munched on first. Reno blinked, swallowing what was in his mouth "You want some too, Lea?"

"Nah, you go ahead, I got something earlier" Lea lied with a smile and pulled away.. He crossed the room to the back left corner, and knelt down once more. Using the knife he had taken from his attacker he carefully pried one of the splintering boards away from the rusty nails that held it down.

Soundless Lea dropped the few pieces of Gil he had collected from his daily routine into a shoe box, then resealed the board into place. He beamed in pride. His stash was getting pretty heavy now, soon he could get the hell out and take Reno with him.

"Is that good?" the older boy asked, returning to the side of his little brother.

"Uh huh!" Reno smiled and gave Lea an affectionate nuzzle.

"heh, I got sumthin' else fer ya" Lea smirked. He reached into the bag, and pulled out what appeared to be a set of goggles, brand _new_ goggles at that!

Promptly, the little child's jaw slacked and his eyes bulged "Lea!!" he squealed in delight "You got me my—"

"Super awesome goggles of doom? Hell yeah" Lea finished with a grin. Tears stung Reno's eyes as he took the package into his tiny hands. He opened it without shame and slipped the long strap over his head. The goggles were far too big for him, but he didn't care.

"Lea.." he began to sniffle all over again "Thanks, yo." Reno threw himself at his older brother, clinging like his life depended on it.

"Ooof!" Lea blinked slightly caught off guard by the sudden force of the little one. He shrugged it off, merely squeezing Reno tighter in his warm embrace "happy birthday Reno"


	2. Got it memorized?

Author's note: Vaguely inspired by Bambi II. Sorry to all the Xigbar lovers, but he fit the profile best. Just because braig is a pedophile doesn't mean it will carry over to his Nobody (unless you want it to, sickos. I kid, really)

Lea woke early. He had a_ lot_ to do and couldn't be late, he'd catch hell for that. With a yawn he forced himself to sit up. Idly he went to rub his face to help him shake the sleep from his body, but when he tried..

"OUCH!" he hissed. The permanent marks on his cheeks were still very fresh, the surrounding areas of his face had swelled with fluid and he probably looked more like a clown now then ever. "Goddamn" Lea muttered beneath his breath.

"Lea?" the boy beside him whispered, having woken up from the movement.

"Go back to sleep Reno, it's early" the older boy replied, gently running his knuckles against Reno's cheek. "I'll wake ya up when it's time to go, get me?"

In turn, the younger boy huffed as he sat up. The long strands of his blood red hair were in total discord. He gave a cute little yawn of his own. It made Lea want to melt into a little puddle of slum love.

"I'm already awake" Reno insisted in an unconvincing manner. He adjusted the goggles that hung around his neck, more or less to confirm they hadn't been stolen from him.

Lea couldn't help but snicker a bit "Well then if you're sure big guy, I wont make ya sleep". He stood, stretching his arms high above his head "Get up then. If we're both awake let's get movin', I'd rather be early then late. If we're lucky we'll grab some breakfast"

At the mention of a possible meal, Reno snapped to full awareness. The young boy leapt to his feet "Heh, ok!" he grinned. He ran to the closet to put on his sneakers, which of course were stolen. Lea stole everything they needed without remorse. In the slums, it was survival of the fittest. Try your best to survive and don't fuck up.

"Ready?" the older Maero brother yawned after lacing up his own boots. He turned to glance at Reno.

"Ready, yo!" Reno smiled offering his brother a thumbs up.

Chuckling Lea shook his head. Ah, the morning was off to a great start. "Here squirt" he stated, draping a large hoodie over Reno's head "Put this on, it's damn chilly out"

"Mfft!" the little red head struggled beneath the massive folds of the black hoodie, sheepishly peeking one blue eye out at his brother.

"Come on squirt!" Lea cackled. He hoisted Reno up onto his shoulders. The boy let out a little 'heeee!' sound of delight when he was swept from the floor. When he was perched on his brother's steady shoulders, Reno adjusted the hoodie so it sat 'properly' on his small frame.

The streets were practically bare, the only stirring was the chilled breeze that lifted the trash up into torrents of what could be considered Midgar's 'Ballet'. It's not like Lea could blame anyone for not being awake. The hour was obscenely early, in fact it should be_ illegal_ for anyone to be up and function at this hour unless he or she was a total lunatic, not to mention asshole for disturbing the peace.

Luckily, Lea mused, he fit the criteria.

Reno slumped against his brother's hair, using it's natural fluff for a pillow as the steady pace lulled him back to sleep. No doubt it had been exhausting to be up, but he had been excited. He loved to accompany Lea on his 'jobs'. He not only got to help his brother, but learned the tools of the trade and what it took to survive in the jungle known as Midgar.

While walking along the damp streets Lea looked up at the early morning sky. Clouds still blanketed the smog infested air, but the scent of fresh rain could almost convince him it was fresh outside. _Almost_. If it weren't for the all the oil and grime that rose to the surface of the concrete then asphalt, sure, what the hell, it was nice out.

Caught in his morbid daydream, Lea took a misstep "Whoa! Shit!" and nearly fell flat on his sore face.

"Ekk! Yo!" Reno cried having been jarred awake. His small hands clung with a death grip to Lea's forehead, pulling the delicate hairs of his eye brows.

"Owowowow!" the older brother whimpered "Yo, Reeeeeeeno! Let up! I don't need no damn face lift at my age!"

"Heh, whoopsie, sorry 'bout that Bro" the smaller boy grinned apologetically, now full awake.

"Uh huh, sure" Lea grinned rolling his eyes.

He continued to walk but diverged from the mainstream of the city sidewalk, staying put in the catacomb of alley ways. It was like a maze for those not used to the under belly of the slums. Lea knew every loose piece of rotting fence wood to move and creep through, every drainage pipe to meander along as though it was his own personal highway, and of course, less conspicuous forms that appeared only as piles of trash. In actuality, they were deliberately placed markers.

Lea had finally reached his destination. He looked back and forth to make sure no one had followed them. Carefully he set Reno down on the moist ground and pulled back one of the loose fence slats "Go, Reno" he insisted in an urgent whisper "You know where to go. Knock twice, ring once. I'll be right behind you"

"Ok, hurry up Lea" the younger boy pouted. He turned to slide through the opening in the fence. Glancing around Reno was momentarily daunted by the mountains of twisted metal that had one time been cars. Hinges of broken doors creaked in the wind, only affirming Reno's thoughts that even though cars weren't 'alive', they still had graves, and they still_ rotted_ in their own way.

He darted through the junkyard, careful of loose pieces of metal littered about the slick ground. Left, right, left, he came upon an old red truck of sorts. The beast lay crumpled on it's side. Reno opened the door and carefully pulled the lever to move the seat up, revealing a long passage way. With a gulp, Reno slipped the goggles over his eyes and slid down through the dark tunnel until he found himself in a chamber slightly bigger then the cab of the truck had been. Raising a tiny fist, he knocked twice, then rang the bell once.

The young boy shifted nervously on his feet, until the large metal door slid open.

Meanwhile, Lea stood outside the fence keeping a silent vigil. He didn't want to follow too soon after Reno, just in case. One could call Lea's behavior border line paranoia, what with his constant looking around and alertness.

Once he was sure he was alone Lea pulled the fence board back and darted along the same path her brother had taken. However, Lea made sure to drag his feet to cover the prints they had both left in the moist soil.

It was a much tighter squeeze for the eleven year old then it had been for his brother. He cursed under his breath, squirming awkwardly down the tunnel until he reached the chamber, where he to, knocked twice and rang the bell once.

The door lurched open just enough for Lea to squeeze himself through. Inside was a collection of crudely made chambers that somehow managed to keep the cold and rain out, but the heat in. Scattered about the common living space were other kids, some older, some younger then himself.

"You're late" a deep voice hissed.

"Yeah, and yer' ugly, but I ain't complainin" Lea snarked while dusting himself off.

"Why you little--!!" the burly teen grumbled snatching Lea by the collar to hoist him off the ground.

"Hey now, let's play nice children" another voice added with a bit of authority.

"Yeah, you heard the boss, put my happy ass down!" Lea snarled, narrowing his eyes. The older boy promptly dropped the red head, and with a grumble turned back to his station by the door.

"Bout' time you showed up, slacker" Lea's savior snorted, narrowing his golden eyes while running a hand through his hair, gently tugging at the black and white strands. He was clad in baggy black pants adorned with chains held on by duct tape, and a gray hoodie.

"Sorry, Braig" Lea offered insincerely "Didn't relish the idea of getting' caught just to get here, yo" he paused "Where's Reno?"

"Here!" the little red head squeaked from behind Braig's legs. He rushed over to throw himself into his brother's arms.

"So I heard he had a birthday" Braig mused, trying to change the topic. He had a better chance of winning a fight with a rock then he did with Lea, and he wasn't in the mood to push the limits today.

"Yep! Sure as hell did!" the older Maero brother grinned. 'Tell the Boss how old ya'are, Reno"

"I'm six, yo!" Reno smiled holding up six fingers.

"Six is a good age" Braig mused, he himself missed being so little, well…not really. Being little was worse then being older. You had to learn how harsh the world was. As it was, he was older then lea by eight years, but he found the elven year old quite skilled and an asset to his organization. With a flip of his wrist, he signaled for the two red heads to follow him.

Passing through the 'kitchen' Braig paused to grab a muffin and offered it to Reno "Happy Birthday" then he glanced up to Lea, narrowing his eyes just slightly. "We need to talk"

Lea narrowed his own eyes a bit, the cool air had eased the swelling of his cheeks so he didn't look so ridiculous anymore. "Reno" he gently squeezed his brother's shoulder "Go sit in that beanbag chair till I get back, got me?"

"Gotcha!" the little red head nodded through a mouthful of muffin. Lea watched his brother slip into the chair before he turned back to Braig and gave a nod.

The older boy lead them down a hall to an office, which was really a hollowed out minivan. Lea hesitated but entered when Braig gestured for him to do so. Once he did however, the other young man slammed the door. 'You fuckin' ungrateful maggot" he growled lowly.

Immediately Lea snapped his gaze to his boss, growling his own warning "'Scuse me, asshole?"

"I know you've been stealing, Maero. Stealing _my_ money. I ain't running a fuckin' charity here" Braig muttered lowly, stepping away from the door.

"It's not your goddamn money to steal, bitchface" the red head countered "It was my understanding, at the end of the week the group split the pot evenly. Now I may not have lasted in school, but I'm no dumbfuck. Two plus two doesn't equal five. I was getting' ripped and you _know_ it. I pull in twice the amount then all these little punks put _together_"

"Yeah, with the tricks_ I_ taught you!" Braig snarled, suddenly closing the gap between them so that only a chair separated them. "You should know better then to fuck with me, Lea" he warned "You've seen what I do to people who screw me over. All I have to do is whistle and those punks will do my every bidding. They fucking _worship _me, Maero. I make them feel good about themselves, give them purpose." There was a sudden smirk branding his features that made quite uncomfortable. Through the sly purse of his lips, there was an almost predatory air.

"You don't give me a damn thing other then a_ lead_" Lea quipped sharply "I've got the talent to make it on my own, I don't need your shit _or_ your measly handfuls of Gil."

"Dude. Lea, Lea, Lea…" Braig sighed and shook his head while wagging a finger "You forget who yer messin with" suddenly the chair was kicked out from between them. It startled the red head who suddenly found himself pressed firmly against the desk. Braig let out a strange breath while his hips ground into Lea's back side, firmly holding him to the chaffed wood of his desk. "I suppose we could find a way for you to pay back what you've stolen"

Lea nearly gagged when he felt one calloused hand slide up his shirt to strum on his boney ribs. However, it was when the second hand began to fiddle with the zipper of his tattered jeans that he snapped to attention.

Oh_ fuck_ no.

"Boss" the read head said in a soft, firm tone. He eyed the desk and it's surrounding areas. Sitting across him his sea green eyes took note of the gardening spade sitting on the desk. Lea didn't bother to question the convenience of it's placement, he'd thank Hyne, or whatever god decided to take pity on him later.

"Hmm..?" the older boy purred into Lea's neck, rolling his hot tongue over the flesh.

Lea sneered, his nose wrinkling with rage. Slowly his hand crept out to grab the handle of the spade "Consider this my letter of resignation.".

With that Lea snapped his elbow back into the jaw of his former 'Boss'. Soon as he was released he swung the spade, catching the edge along Braig's cheek, carving a crude, triangle shape out of his cheek.

The wound spewed blood in every direction, showering the room and them both in the spray.

"You little fucker! After everything!!" Braig was furious, and for once Lea felt a little afraid. The next few moments were but a blur in his mind. He vaguely remembered dashing out of the room, grabbing Reno by the wrist.

"Lea!!" the young one cried at the sudden force he was pulled at "What's going on?!" he whimpered.

The older boy didn't have time to answer. He merely sung Reno onto his shoulders and scurried up the tunnel, the sounds of what he once considered his 'friends' clamoring up to take vengeance on him. "OUCH!" he winced when he felt something sharp dig into his ankle.

Looking down briefly his eyes widened at the sight of a large dog latched to his ankle. He should have expected that. The little group of misfits Braig 'took in' often kept and trained stray dogs as fighters. For a moment Lea found himself admiring the practicality, before reminding himself he was victim.

With his other leg Lea kicked the mutt between the eyes, knocking it back down the tunnel a good ways. The pain was overwhelming, not just his ankle but the massive headache that threatened to rip his skull in two.

Finally Lea pulled himself out of the tunnel "Hang on Reno, keep your eyes closed" he managed to bite out through clenched teeth. Oh boy, he had fucked up royal now. He knew sooner or later he'd get caught stealing, Braig was far from stupid. But why did he have to go and try to rip his face off?

Oh, right. He wanted to fondle his boy parts.

Lea cursed himself. If he had been careful, he wouldn't have had to burn the few bridges he had. But now life was going to get exceedingly difficult. Everyone between the ages of three and twenty one would be after his skull, and worse, it put Reno in danger.

Oh god_damn_ it. Why could he never catch a break?

However he didn't have time to dwell on this. He had to find a way out that they wouldn't think of. Glancing around Lea noticed a large pile of scrap metal that hung over the teetering fence. Taking a deep breath he ran towards it, the sounds of barking dogs and screaming once-comrades echoing through his ears.

To make matters worse, the red head was starting to feel a little weak from blood loss. His blood was thin from the lack of iron (or anything) in his diet, and Reno had become dead weight. Lea had to struggle to keep from collapsing.

"Reno" he managed at the base of the pile "You're going to have to climb" he insisted. He set his brother down and gave him a push upwards.

"O-ok!!" the boy sobbed, trying to keep a brave face as he scrambled up the length of the pile. He looked back to see Lea struggling, but following swiftly behind him. It was in that moment Reno lost his footing "Ack! LEA!" he wailed sliding down the metal tower to nearly the bottom. He landed on dilapidated tire. Hearing the sharp sounds of ravenous dogs Reno whipped around just in time to see seven mongrels heading right for him with hunger in their eyes. The crowd of people following behind the demon canines barred weapons of mass mutilation.

Immediately he froze, terrified. Reno couldn't hear, he couldn't see, he was a statue.

"Reno!!" Lea nearly screamed, his heart thumping so hard it hurt. "Reno, run!!" he urged, trying to get down to his brother without killing them both in the process. "RENO! RUN! RUN NOW!" Lea screamed when he got no reaction out of his brother.

He was petrified, literally. Desperately glancing around Lea forced his eyes to focus. From the rubble a large, thick pipe stuck out. It was wedged between….something big, and what appeared to be one of those old 'beetle' cars.

The cogs (albeit rusty ones) in Lea's head began to churn. He forced himself up and grabbed the bar, forcing his weight down on it. He felt the metal buckle, and the car launched forward, nearly toppling the would be attackers.

With that Lea grabbed an old hubcap to use as a sled and dove down the pile of scrap metal. On the way down he snatched Reno up onto his shoulders. "DUCK!" he ordered as they veered beneath the low chasse of the beetle car (which had magically landed on it's too large wheels, hot damn, maybe Lea did believe in luck)

Huffing and puffing Lea forced the hub cap to stop. Snatching Reno by the wrist he dragged his brother through the loose board in the fence and proceeded to run like hell. The direction didn't matter, nothing mattered but getting the hell outta dodge.

Lea made sure to stick to concrete and fence line, trying to avoid anything that would leave a footprint. Because of the puddles left from the rain, it was nearly impossible for him to leave a blood trail from the bite wound.

He was damn glad he'd never invited any of those ingrates over to his house. He'd be royally screwed then. It's not like he could trust his parents to defend his sorry ass.

When he felt they were a safe distance away Lea came to a half, his hands on his knees as he tried desperately to catch his breath. Vaguely he could hear Reno's soft sniffling.

"Lea, I-I—" the little red head began to stutter.

"What the hell is wrong with you?!" Lea snarled suddenly. He clutched Reno's shoulders and proceeded to shake him "When I tell you to run, you better fuckin' RUN. Don't you EVER just stand there like that! What woulda happened if I couldn't do nuthin', huh? Huh!? Those bastards would have torn your ass apart and then what would I do!? Huh!? What would I do if they got you!?"

"I-I!!" Reno sobbed uncontrollably now "I-I'm sorry…" he whispered under his breath "I-I'm sorry…I'm sorry"

"…." Lea felt his adrenaline beginning to pump again, his heart raced and broke at the same time as he stared down at his sobbing little brother. For a moment he just stood there before he bent to pick the little red head up and hold him as close as a possible "Listen, I'm sorry fer yellin' at ya, ok?" he murmured pulling Reno away just enough so their foreheads rested against each other "I just, I got scared, yo. I got scared I'd lose you."

Reno nodded a little "I-I know" he sniffled nuzzling his cheek to Lea's. "I didn't mean to scare you"

"It's cool" Lea sighed "I love ya Reno, got it memorized?"


	3. Playing Doctor

Author's note: A bit of a boring chapter, I hope it stays interesting for you all. Enjoy. As usual, reviews appreciated and flames ignored.

"Hungry?" Lea asked the boy he toted up on his shoulders.

"Sorta" Reno murmured reluctantly, hugging his hoodie around his shoulders "Doesn't yer ankle hurt, yo?'

"Like hell" the older boy replied simply, his step gradually becoming more impaired under the light weight of his brother.

More like a fuck, Lea thought to himself. The pain was getting to the point where his vision was beginning to blur. He forced himself to focus. Push the pain out, it was no different then any other damn day.

To his right Lea raised a brow at the parked ice cream truck. Those were one of the few treats that anyone in the slums could afford to indulge in. He raised a crisp red brow as he saw the driver set a couple of popsicles on the counter with a few bills in change, no doubt it belonged to one of those damn noisy brats hovering outside the window.

Keeping his gate casual Lea passed the truck, his right hand scraping silently across the counter to not only take the change, but the frozen treats. Before anyone noticed, he vanished in the crowds.

"Here you go, Squirt" he said after opening the first blue confection and passed it up to Reno.

"Sea Salt Ice cream! My favorite!" Reno declared quite happily, hastily taking it into his grip.

"Must be lucky" the older boy snarked a bit under his breath. Psh, yeah right. Luck was not something he believed in, especially after what just happened. Lea stuffed the change into his pocket and then unwrapped his own ice cream, hoping the chill it brought to his lips would help him focus on something other then what felt like thousands of needles stabbing his ankle.

"Look, Lea!" Reno squeaked pointing out to the horizon "A rainbow! Ain't it pretty, yo?".

Lea paused to turn and stare at the rainbow. Well, hot damn, it really was there, and so were the impending storm clouds. Great, just fucking great, it had to rain before he fixed the leak in the kitchen. Despite all the bitter thoughts he harbored, the older boy couldn't help be entranced by the rainbow. He took a lick of his ice cream, repressing the urge to reach out and try to touch the illusive ribbons of light.

Why did he feel so damn helpless suddenly?

A cold splash of…something, shook Lea from his daydream. Reaching up to touch his cheek he felt the sticky syrup of Sea salt ice cream that was melting all over Reno's hands.

"Is that good?" Lea asked with a small grin "Better hurry up and eat that thing, I don't need to get all that sticky shit in my hair"

"Yep!" Reno nodded happily from where he was perched on Lea's shoulders. As if to emphasis the admission, the little red head took a long slurp on the sea salt ice cream, careful not to drip anymore on his brother. "How's your ankle, Lea?"

"Good" the older boy muttered, taking a tentative lick of his own. He winced, the weight on his shoulders increasing by the minute. Gently he shifted his little brother and set him on the ground beside him, making sure to keep a strong hold on Reno's hand.

"Lair" the younger boy huffed as he was placed on the ground "Lea! Yer still bleedin, yo!" Reno cried out in dismay. He had seen the growing stain on Lea's tattered pants "Let's go home so you can rest. Tomorrow we can go to work!" he smiled.

"Reno.." Lea started, only to be interrupted.

"And then you can finish teaching me all that stuff I need to be as good as you are! I'm over my cold now!" Reno clapped.

"Reeeeno…listen—"

"Oh boy, Braig we'll be so happy we're back! He always said we're best when we're togeth—"

"_Reno_" the older boy growled in a stronger tone. Reno blinked, somewhat startled by his brother's tone. He looked up at Lea while taking a timid lick of his popsicle. Lea stared down with a slightly narrowed visage, his grip on Reno's hand increasing just slightly. "Listen, Shorty. We're not going to go back there, ever. Got me?"

"We're not?" the little red head blinked, taking a bite off his ice treat "Did you guys have a fight??"

"You could say that" Lea shrugged. He of course wasn't going to explain to Reno about his near molestation. Oh, what a lovely conversation_ that_ would be. Followed by all kinds of questions he didn't want to answer. Yes, Lea could admit his ego often took precedent over the truth.

"Oh, well, you can make up, right? I know when I have fights with people I just tell them a whole bunch how sorry I am—"

Lea sighed, rolling his eyes "Re-no" he growled once more "Listen to me very carefully, yo. Sometimes people ain't as nice as they pretend. Braig is one of them types. You will not be going back to him for anything, and neither will I. It's gonna be hard to work now. Braig is super fuckin' pissed, and he may not be nice to us anymore. You gotta promise me you'll stay home, ok?"

For a moment it appeared Reno was going to protest, his lower lip jutted out into a pout and his brows furrowed together. However, seeing his older brother's distress and pain must have changed his mind and Reno merely nodded "Ok, yo"

"Come on, I think I may take you up on that rest thing." Lea yawned. He went to take a step but nearly fell forward, having to lean against the wall of a run down building to support himself.

"Lea!!" Reno wailed, clutching his brother "Lea! Come on, we gotta get you home, yo! That way I can take care of you! Please it's only a little farther!" he insisted "Lean on me" he huffed taking Lea's hands and setting them on his own tiny shoulders.

"Ugh.." Nausea was quickly over taking the older red head. "Yeah, ok yo" he managed to say somewhat steadily under his breath. Using Reno as a guide and post to lean on Lea did keep the pace.

When the siblings arrived they were welcomed by an empty home. Reno rolled his eyes. He didn't know _exactly_ what his parents did, but he did know it meant mom was running around with all the neighbors and dad was down at the bar.

"Only a little farther" he encouraged his ailing big brother.

Finally they got to the bedroom and Lea nearly collapsed over his brother. Reno managed to redirect his brother's fall so that he landed on the thin piece of foam they used for a bed.

"Shh, is'ok, yo. I'm gonna take care of ya Lea" Reno whispered as he propped Lea's head up on his lap.

"Heh, y-ya gonna be my doctor, huh?" the older brother smiled.

"I can't be a doctor" Reno sighed "look at me…"

"Hey, listen to me Squirt" Lea winced. He glanced up and brought up a hand to cup his brother's tiny cheek "You can be anything you damn well wanna be and don't let some assholes tell ya different, got it memorized? If ya wanna be a doctor, ya can be" glancing down at his bleeding ankle Lea offered his brother a small smile "Ya can start by wrappin' me up"

"Hehe, ok!" the younger boy nodded happily. Glancing around he pondered what material he could use. "Ah ha!" he cackled proudly. Darting to the closet Reno dug around for an old scarf that had out lived it's original intention, the ends were badly frayed but there was a decent portion in the middle still intact.

He returned to his brother's side and rolled up his pant leg to tie off the wound with a rather messy, but functional knot.

"Look, I did it Lea! I made the knot you showed me!" Reno squealed happily. However when he got no response other then the strangled breath and chattering teeth of his brother, he stood up "L-lea?" he inched his way over, gasping in horror at the sight.

Lea was pale, the area beneath his eyes slightly discolored and sunken in a little. He shivered, it was rather cold outside but somehow Reno knew it was due to his injury.

"L-lea! Don't die! Please don't die!" he sobbed. The young boy was suddenly terrified, the thought of not only being alone, but losing the one person who had taken care of him since before he could remember…was heart breaking.

"I-I'll…be alright" the older boy feigned a lop sided grin despite how his entire form shimmied with the chills.

"I gotta warm you up" he sniffled. "I'll be right back, kay? Don't move!" Reno flailed wildly. He darted out of the room to his parents 'room'. Being the wonderful, doting parents they were, never stayed home at night. And if they did, it was often after drunken rages and they passed out on the floor.

Taking advantage of this knowledge Reno snatched the rather decent blanket off their bed, and by decent, it meant the blanket had no holes and was thicker then a sheet. He also snagged a pillow. With full arms he toted his spoils back to the room he shared with Lea.

"Lift yer head up, yo" he gently requested, then slid the pillow beneath the silky spikes of Lea's hair. "Lookie, I got the blanket!" Reno grinned triumphantly, waving the material around like a flag.

"W-way to go" Lea offered a tiny grin as the younger red head spread the blanket over his shivering form. "O-oh gods…" he lurched forward, covering his mouth with his hands.

"Here!" Reno immediately sprang into action. Grabbing the two buckets of clean water they were rationed for the day, Reno proceeded to dump one into the other. Taking the empty pail he set it beside Lea, who proceeded to lean over and vomit. Reno stood diligently by his brother's side, his tiny hands holding back the long locks of red hair out of Lea's face.

When he had spilled the meager contents of his stomach Lea fell onto his back, shaking worse then he had before. He hugged the blanket around himself, clinging to warmth it offered. He felt a damp material grace his lips and cheeks. Glancing up, he saw Reno sitting beside him, gently washing his face.

"Heh, y-yer turnin' out to be a g-great doctor there, S-squirt" Lea encouraged.

"Heh, you think so?" Reno beamed in pride "here, drink up"

Lea opened his mouth when he felt the gentle caress of a porcelain bowl to his lips. Greedily he sucked the water down, the burning in his throat slowly dissipating. Reno set the bowl aside once Lea had finished.

"Y-you know what I n-need?" Lea ventured after a moment, his voice barely above a whisper.

"Huh? What is it, bro?" Reno asked, attentively leaning forward on his palms so his ear was closer "I promise I'll get it for you, whatever it is!"

As if to answer the question Lea lifted his arms up to pull Reno beneath the blanket with him. Gently he nuzzled his chin and nose into the soft tresses of red hair.

Reno let out a relieved sigh, a tiny yawn escaping his lips as he snuggled into the warmth of his brother, his own tiny arms latching to him. "I'll stay with you, Lea. I promise I will"


	4. Make a wish

Author's note: Yet another boring chapter to set up the plot and further show how close Reno and Lea are, promise the next one will be better.

The oil stained sun had set beyond the cascade of decaying buildings, any minute the heavy clouds that loomed above the tiny shack of a home threatened to burst, bringing down cold torrents of rain.

Reno stared down at his sleeping brother, concern welling up in his bright blue eyes. Lea was starting to look better. Color was returning to his skin and the chills that so violently shook his body had subsided quite a bit. However, the little Maero knew it wouldn't be enough.

When was the last time he'd seen Lea eat? Well, he had the ice cream, but that wasn't really good food. It was more of a toothache on a stick. Reno was lucky, Lea always made sure he had a toothbrush and toothpaste. In the slums, dental work was an unattainable luxury.

It only brought him back to his first dilemma. Lea needed to eat, and he himself could use a bite. The young boy smacked his lips together twice and raised a brow.

"Hmm" he mused aloud, tapping his finger to his chin, and idea suddenly coming to light. "Hehe" he rubbed his palms together "exceeeellent" This would be Reno's first independent job, and it would require all the skill he had.

He stood up slowly as to not creak the floor boards. With well calculated tip toes Reno made his way over to Lea's duffle bag. Unzipping it he silently rummaged it's contents: playing cards, loaded dice, and other rigged objects of chance.

At the bottom of the bag he found a quarter with a hole drilled in it, and through the hole was a thin piece of string tied to the metal. Reno pocketed the strange coin. He glanced back to Lea who was still sound asleep. The six year old bent to kiss his brother's forehead "I'll be back Lea, I promise. You just rest" he smiled.

With that Reno slunk out of the bedroom and down the hall. His parents were home and screaming at each other. Big friggin' deal, he rolled his eyes.

With great care he slipped unnoticed out the front door. The young boy shivered as he glanced out at the desolate streets, the air moist and cold with the threat of rain. Rain that would only make Lea get worse…Reno pouted.

Pulling his hoodie on tighter the red head walked down to the street corner where he knew there was a pay phone. It took him a bit of effort to pry the door open, his fingers just barely grazed the handle. Narrowing his eyes in determination Reno snorted and gave a mighty leap and a pull.

"AH!" he flailed wildly when the door swung open.

He dropped down to the ground and scurried inside the booth. Once inside he opened the phone book till he found restraints that delivered to his crap hole of a neighbor hood. Hmm, what sounded good and what would Lea like? Ah ha!

Reno ripped the add out of the add from the flimsy yellow pages, then proceeded to use the book as a step stool so he could jump to the counter and thus reach the phone. Lifting the receiver from the hook he pushed the quarter into the slot, making sure to hold onto the string.

When he heard the phone 'click', the young red head yanked the coin back out and stuffed it in his pocket, then dialed the number of the paper he held in his hands. He stood, shifting anxiously as he listened to the other end of the line ring.

"Thank you for calling Noodle Hut! How can we help you?" a cheery female voice answered.

Taking a deep breath, Reno covered his mouth and nose with the add he had torn from the book "Yes, hello" he said in his deepest voice possible "My name is Mister Brough, and I live at 1441 in Secter Five. I would like two orders of fried rice, ten egg rolls, and two fortune cookies. You'll have to have your delivery van park facing the house, my driveway is very narrow, you see"

"Alright, sir! The total will be $28.76, is something wrong with your voice? You seem a little squeaky" the woman replied.

"Uh…" Reno blinked "It's my nose" he coughed. "You know, it's cold…"

"Oh, I understand!" she chirped "We'll be arriving in about twenty minutes, sir!" and with that she hung up the phone.

"Alright, thank you" Reno hung up the phone and jumped down from the counter. He raced down the sidewalk. With a giggle he bounced into a puddle, sending the polluted water flying all around his ankles.

Once he reached his home he crouched behind the trashcans and waited. Sure enough the delivery van pulled up infront of his neighbor's house as he had planned, the delivery boy whipped open the double doors to remove his bags and haphazardly attempted to shut it with his hip.

Striding up the walk, he knocked on the door and waited impatiently.

"Yeah, what do you want?" an old man snarled at the delivery boy.

"Delivering your food, sir. The total is $28.76" the young man blinked.

"Ya think I got that kinda money?!" the old man declared "I didn' order no food!"

" You calling me a liar? This is 1441, Brough Residence, isn't it?" the delivery boy huffed.

"It is, but I didn't order no damn food!"

As the bickering continued, a little red head slunk his way to the back of the van which faced away from the scene. The double doors had been left slightly a jar for _any_ stranger to sneak into, pity. The rain poured down now, covering the sound of creaky door hinges opening.

Reno grinned as he plucked as many bags of food up into his arms as he could possibly carry. It was the perfect crime. He'd gotten away with it and done it on his own! Lea would be so proud!

Before entering his house Reno rolled the tops of the paper bags shut to help conceal the smell. No way he was going to share his bounty with his parents. Fortunate for him, it seemed they had gone already. Well good riddance.

Proudly the boy strutted down the hall to his room with his bounty. He was a genius, he knew it and this confirmed it. Entering the room he shut the door softly behind him and set the bags down by his brother.

"Lea?" he gently shook him.

"Hmm?" the older boy yawned blinking his eyes open. A heavenly smell invaded his nose and it urged him to rise. "Reno?" Lea blinked at his younger brother who was now setting out their meal. "Where, did you get this?"

Reno merely flashed Lea a tight lipped, secretive little smile. "You look so much better! How do ya feel?" he asked while thrusting a package of fried rice into Lea's hands.

"I…" Lea was completely stunned, and it only made Reno puff out his chest in pride. It made the older red head smile "I feel great, Doc, thanks yo" he proceeded to help himself to the rice he had been given. "It's yummy"

"Yay!" the younger brother clapped happily while munching on his own eggrolls. "I did good?"

"You did fuckin' awesome" Lea grinned. He pulled Reno into his lap and picked him up, as well as the blanket and their food. Careful not to stress his ankle Lea strode over to the bench seat in their semi-clean window and plopped down, holding Reno securely in his lap.

The two brothers ate in companionable silence, the whole time Lea kept one hand firmly across Reno's stomach in a protective fashion. Together they watched the rain slide down the pollution stained glass of the window.

"What time it is?" the older red head finally ventured.

"Almost nine" the little one replied.

"I slept a long time" Lea mused under his breath "Were you worried?"

Reno nodded "I…was scared" he confessed, forcing the lump in his throat to remain beneath his voice "I thought…you were so sick"

"Shh" his brother cooed, gently nuzzling the little one and hugged him close, but was careful not to hinder his eating "I ain't goin' anywhere. Sometimes people just get tired and little things like mangy dogs bites turn into bigger pains in the asses then they normally would be"

"Like mom and dad?" Reno sniffled, rubbing his tired eyes with his small fists.

"Hehe, yeah, like them" Lea wasn't exactly sure what Reno meant by that, but at this point he was desperate to make him feel better. "Someday, Reno, we're going to get away from all this. It'll just be you'an me, yo. No dumbass mom'n pop, no Braig, no nuthin. I can't say when that'll be cause I don't honestly know, but I can promise you someday"

"Someday is better then no day at all" Reno smiled leaning his head up to nuzzle beneath Lea's chin "And I can chill out till then, yo" he giggled, stuffing more egg rolls into his mouth.

"Hmm" Lea smiled, feeling a sudden weight lift and fall on his shoulders at the same time. If they could leave, where would they go? He had heard of other places outside this land, where grass grew and the sky was clean. But they were all the way across the ocean. That was a very long way, it would be exhausting and he wasn't sure if Reno could handle it.

It didn't matter, he decided. If he had to carry Reno the entire damn way he'd fucking do it, complete with swimming across the ocean like a mad man.

"Lea" Reno breathed in awe as he stared out the window "Look…"

Shaken from his thoughts Lea pried his gaze away from the boy in his lap to the scene outside his window.

Right before their very eyes the violent storm clouds parted to reveal a glowing green meteor streaking across the sky, the sparkling trail left in it's wake cleared the sky to reveal the stars for the first time in years. Something about it was oddly comforting, Lea discovered. The soft glowing green, the beauty of the light.

"Make a wish" the older Maero instructed his younger brother.

"I already did" Reno yawned, eyes drifting shut as he leaned against Lea's chest.

"Oh yea?" Lea whispered, stroking Reno's temple just lightly and adjusted the goggles around his neck.

"I wished…" the young boy started, but trailed off.

"….don't worry, Reno" Lea yawned himself, nuzzling his little brother close "Something tells me things will get better soon".

Glancing one last time at the now clear night, Lea wondered 'what the hell was that?' before he yawned and shut his own eyes, settling down for another restful sleep.


	5. Flowers and Lollipops

Author's note: Another new character with a familiar face. This is the final chapter of 'building' up. I hope it's not too boring. Real soon, we're going to see how capable Reno actually is.

"No" Lea stated firmly as he dressed.

"But Lea!" Reno tried to insist.

"But nuthin'" the older read head snorted shooting his little brother a narrow eyed glance "You ain't go with me, got it memorized?" he tapped his own temple. Lea knelt down by his duffle bag, seeming to be looking for something.

With a snort Reno crossed his tiny arms furiously over his chest and glared his own adorable glare. Suddenly he pounced ontop of the bag, clinging to it and preventing Lea from further digging inside it "But Lea! Yer gonna leave me with mom'n pop? They're _mean_ to me!" he whined.

"Just stay in here and they'll ignore ya like they always do" Lea said simply "Besides, Braig would be meaner to ya then they would I think" he muttered under his breath.

"Leeea!!" Reno writhed in desperation "Please take me with you! If it's really so dangerous you could protect me better that way! It's not like they couldn't find this place if they wanted to" he pouted, making sure to pucker his bottom lip.

"Damn it" Lea sighed. The fact was his little brother was right. It wasn't like Braig was_ stupid_, and Lea knew it. He could easily figure out where they lived. However he shot Reno a small grin and ruffled his hair "You're too good for me, yo."

With a victorious grin Reno proceeded to hug Lea's leg "I learned from the best, yo"

"Well, no shit" Lea snickered a bit "Alright, but if yer goin' with me, yer gonna work"

"Yes sir!" Reno saluted valiantly.

The older red head hoisted the smaller one up onto his shoulders "And no complainin'" Lea added. With a yawn he slowly crept out the door to their room and tip toed down the hall. He rolled his eyes as he stalked to the front door. His mother and father were sprawled out on the living syringe laden room floor, their bodies reeking of alcohol. "Don't look, Reno" he muttered, reaching up to cover his brother's eyes.

"What? Is it a surprise?" Reno whispered in an excited tone, both his tiny hands covering Lea's.

"…yeah" Lea tried to mask the disappointment in his voice, but it was impossible. He slipped out the door and took a deep breath, and was utterly surprised by how clear the air was. Blinking his two green eyes Lea craned his head upwards as he began to walk down the street.

"Wow, look at all the clouds Lea!" his little brother chirped "They're so white and fluffy! Wow! The sky really_ is_ blue!"

"Sure as hell is" Lea nodded. It was weird, since when did breathing so deep not burn your lungs? And since where were the clouds _white_ and_ fluffy_, and not that polluted grimy brown? He wondered if it had something to do with that meteor they had seen last night. It had left a clear path in it's wake, hm.

With a defeated shrug Lea winced a bit "Reno, yer gonna have to walk" he muttered.

"Yer ankle still hurt?" the little one pouted as he was gently lifted up and set down on the ground.

"A little bit, don't wanna push it too much, yo. Or it'll just get worse" Lea explained with a tiny smile as he held out his hand.

"Heh, ok!" Reno nodded and gladly took his brother's hand. "So, where we goin' to work?"

"That's a helluva good question" Lea conceded. He knew that Braig had sectors one through three completely inedited with Renegades, and that four and five weren't uncommon stomping ground. That left six and seven. "Six or seven?"

"Six, cause that's how old I am, yo!" Reno grinned, then paused "But that's sooooo far 'way, how we gonna get there, yo?"

"That's good enough for me" Lea smirked in satisfaction "Why, we'll improvise"

"Oh, ok! Improvise!" the little red head nodded like it was common knowledge. He stood for a moment "Lea, what's improvise?"

"It's what we do for a living, Reno" Lea replied.

……………………………..

Four jumped turnstiles, two unsuspecting cab drivers, and a water delivery truck later, Lea and Reno were scoping out the crowded streets of sector six. The place gave Lea goose bumps. The place was an absolutely mess. Garbage floated in the streets and the air was so pungent with sickness and pollution it was hard not go gag. Apparently this was the _one_ place that goddamn meteor hadn't gotten to yet.

"You ok, Reno?" he managed to ask with a level tone.

"This place smells like butt!" Reno hissed, his too large shirt pulled over his nose.

"Sure as hell does" Lea sighed. This place also liked to pretend, he noted. The side walk was lined with places that looked like they were_ trying_ to be fancy little stores, inns, and other such things, but failed miserably due to the fact they were inherently_ very_ ghetto. Leaning down a bit, Lea whispered "We need a pigeon, Reno. We're gonna go with 'hole in one' to start"

For a moment Reno merely listened before recognition set in and he nodded "Alright" glancing around, he noticed a man sitting on a bench at the bus stop. He wore a suit that was horribly stained and had a small tear in the lapel that had been vainly covered with up a pin of some kind. He had pride coming out the ass for no apparent reason, and read the business section of the newspaper like he was a hot shot.

"There" he pointed.

Lea observed the scene before giving a nod "Alright, go to it, I'll be right behind you"

Nodding Reno scurried over and stealthily sat on the bench. Popping his lips the little boy began to hum, pulling out a small trinket from his pocket. It was one of those ball-in-cup toys. Idly he began to try and land the ball in the cup, making sure to sound his frustration every time he failed.

"Aw, don't give up, yo" Lea soothed now standing beside his brother "Lemme give it a try?"

"ok, but'is reeeeally hard!" Reno warned and handed the toy over. Sure enough, Lea wasn't able to do it, making sure he too voiced his frustration.

"Goddamn" the man in the suit snorted "What the hell is wrong with you kids? Your parents drugged out when they had you or something? Just get the ball in the goddamn cup!"

"They were, but that ain't the point" Lea scoffed "It's a lot harder then it looks, yo. Why don't you put your money where your mouth is and try"

"You wanna make a bet? I don't make bets with slum rats" he growled.

"Aww, dun worry Lea. He's just scared he can't do it either" Reno stuck his tongue out at the man.

"I am not scared!" he protested.

"I got my gil" Lea flashed him a couple of bills from his pocket "Come on now, be a big man and step up, yo" he yawned "Course, if ya are afraid of losing a couple bills, that's cool. I wouldn't wanna get my ass proven wrong by a couple kids"

"Shut up, you little asshole" the man snarled as he dug out his tattered wallet. He pulled out double the amount Lea had shown him (granted, it was only something like eight dollars), and it hadn't shocked the red head. "I'll show you little dumb fucks how it's down" tossing the money down between him and Reno and put his wallet in his back pocket. "Gimme the damn ball"

Reno handed him the ball and the man sneered. He began to try and bounce the ball into the cup, only to find it was very hard. The string that held the ball to the cup wasn't to blame, he could see that. He scoffed but didn't stop trying.

"Buddy, give it up" Lea mused now standing behind the bench, one hand on Reno's shoulder and the other reaching out for the toy "Besides, ain't that yer bus?" he grinned.

"Fuckers" the man growled nearly throwing the toy at Lea, who had already pocketed his money. "Little bastards" he snarled as he stood from the bench. When the double doors opened he walked up the stairs. When he went to pull out his wallet for his bus pass, he gasped when he realized it was gone. Whipping around to glance at the bench, both the red heads had vanished.

"Good job, Reno" Lea congratulated as the pair walked down the sidewalk, his hand sweeping out to grab wallet that had been so carelessly hung on a chain of some wanna be gangster's pants. He didn't plan to walk far, just away from the bus stop for the moment. The Square was where all the ghetto people tried to forget they were ghetto and came to shop and pretend they wee hot shots, perfect place to make a killing. Today, the buzz was about a meteor that had crash landed. Hm.

"See?" Reno mused as he snatched a lollypop from a baby in a passing stroller "I told you I was a good helper"

"Ya are" he nodded in confirmation as he glanced around. He eyed a young couple, by the way the young woman fiddled with the ring on her finger, they were recently engaged. What was even better, the young man had blue eyes and red hair. It wasn't as vibrant as his own or Reno's hair, but it would work. "Reno" he bent again "See them over there?"

"Uh huh" the elven year old nodded "A Number Three"

"Oh, hehe, I love those!" Reno giggled and quickly finished off the lollypop, chucking the stick to the ground. The little boy cleared his throat, tussled his already messy hair, and adjusted the goggles around his neck. Putting on his most adorable, teary face he darted across the walk and threw himself into the surprised lap of the young man "Daaaaaaaaaaddy!" he wailed.

"What the!? Connor? Who is this??" the young woman shrieked, backing away, leaving her purse unguarded under the bench.

"I-I! Veronica! I swear I've never seen him before in my life!" the young man, Conner, replied with horrified eyes.

"Don't you love me anymore, daddy?" Reno wailed as loud as he could "You said you were goin' to get milk and you never came hooooooome!!"

"It's all starting to make sense now!" Veronica began to sob, herself "Why you wont let me come over, why you never talk about your history…oh Conner, I thought you were different!"

"Sweetie, believe me!" Conner pleaded, leaning forward to try and get Reno off of him "I've never seen him befo--"

"Don'tcha love me daddy??" Reno sniffled, making sure to sound utterly pathetic.

As Conner struggled, a skilled hand slunk into his back pocket and proceeded to commandeer his wallet.

"I never want to see you again!" Veronica wailed and pegged the ring at Connor's forehead. Seeing this was enough, Reno released him and the young man took off after his former bride. Eyeing the purse under the bench, Reno snagged it "Hehe" he grinned.

"Hmm, don't think that's yer color, yo" Lea chuckled and took the purse. He dumped the contents out on the sidewalk and took the money, but left all the other girly crap. "Doin' good so far" he said aloud.

"Yay!" Reno clapped as he stood, brushing himself off. "Where now?"

"Another round through the square, don't wanna be here if she realizes she forgot her shit" Lea explained. Taking Reno's hand the two began to walk, casually 'bumping into' people, and taking their wallets.

"Uff" Lea huffed when a tall blonde man with a beard and mustache bumped into him rather hard.

"Excuse me, young man" he apologized but kept walking, the slight accent in his tone was a bit unusual.

Wait, what the hell? "Oh shit" Lea immediately paused checking all is pockets.

"Something wrong?" Reno blinked in worry.

Lea didn't answer right away as he dug through his pockets finding that nothing had been stolen. Letting out a relieved sigh he began to push the content back in, until he felt a thick piece of paper poke it's way through the wad of bills. Curiously he pulled out a business card. It was blank, aside from the word 'dice' written across it in silver letters.

Turning it over, there was a note written across the back: _Hungry? Meet me at Café De Roso, and no, I'm not a cop_

Hm. How very suspicious, Lea thought as he narrowed his eyes. He stared at the card for a long time, trying to decide what he wanted to do. On one hand, it could be a trap. On the other…well, he was damn hungry which meant that Reno was starved, maybe they could snatch some tips and left overs. Glancing up he saw the blonde man now sitting at said restaurant, sipping some coffee. At least they wouldn't have to walk far, his ankle was starting to bother him.

"Come on Reno" the older red head nodded "Let's go get some food"

With a smile Reno nodded "Ok, yo!" he chirped. He took Lea's hand and waited to be lead.

Lea suppressed a yawn as he easily strode across the walk to the café. He stopped at the table outside on the dining patio and raised a brow.

"Oh, you arrived" the young man grinned, gray eyes twinkling as he set his cup down "Please, sit down" he gestured to the two chairs adjacent to him. Once Lea and Reno sat down, the man continued "I have been watching you two all morning, your work is very impressive. Ah, miss? Two orange juices for my guests" he gestured to the boys when the waitress stopped by "Please, order whatever you would like"

"waffles please!" Reno immediately piped "And bacon and hash browns, and spaghetti!"

"…." Lea was going to scold Reno's choice of breakfast, but who the hell cared? It wasn't like he was paying for it.

"I'll take a cheeseburger, and pizza" Lea ordered as well.

"And myself" the blonde man mused handing back the menus "Club sandwich, please"

When the waitress left with their orders Lea turned his gaze back to the blonde man "You are, huh? How old are you?" he narrowed his eyes. "Never seen you 'round here before"

"Oh, my apologies for the lack of introduction. I am Ludro" the man grinned "I'm a mere twenty four, and I can say my tastes lie in good women and even better thieves."

Well, at least he wasn't a pedophile.

"Yer not part of the Renegades are you?" the older red head asked under his breath, keeping a firm grip on Reno's hand.

"I am not" Ludro mused, sipping his coffee "But we are not so different. Braig, as I hear tries to help those who cannot help himself while scraping off the top. He also tries to rally against Shinra Corp. by attacking their cars, does he not?"

"How do you know all that?" Lea growled, handing Reno his food and drink when it arrived. The little red head squeaked and began to stuff himself without a care in the world.

"In order to be ontop, one must know the competition, hm?" Ludro mused beginning to eat his own food "Come now, eat!" he insisted. "By the way, I have given you my name, what is yours?"

"Lea" he replied "And Reno" to his little brother.

"Alright Mr. Lea, let us talk business" the older man nodded "I am based out of a little place up north called Nibelheim. I provide my…ah, 'employees' with all the things they need. Food, shelter, the works. You're wasted talent here, Lea, the both of you. I would love it if you considered coming back to work for me"

"…for you?" Lea blinked, a little stunned. They could really get out of Midgar and have a home? It was all too good to be true. Ludro seemed sincere enough, but Lea had begun to enjoy working for himself, so to speak. Spending time with Reno, just the two of them, was amazing. "Sorry" he finally managed, taking a bite out of his burger "I appreciate the offer, yo. But me and Reno ain't ready to leave yet, got some stuff to do before we head out into the big bad world on our own, ya know?"

Ludro, though seeming a little disappointed, nodded and smiled "Well, let me write down my number on that card" he mused and took the card from Lea, putting his number down "If you ever change your mind, let me know, alright? Ah, miss? The check please, and bring my young friends here a doggy bag"

…………………

"I'm soooooooooo full!" Reno moaned happily from where he rode on Lea's shoulders.

"My too, yo, ain't it nice?" he snickered in reply, totting not only a good days haul of cash in his pockets, but doggy bags of food courtesy of Ludro. Definitely a step in the right direction, Lea thought with a satisfied nod. "Hey, wanna go see the crash sight?"

"Yeah! It'd be cool, yo!" the younger red head giggled, putting his goggles over his eyes "Gooooo!" he pointed.

"Heh, gonna be a polite now, huh?" Lea laughed as he proceeded to run. He reveled in the laughter of his younger brother. This is how things should be, not just for them, but everyone. Life shouldn't have to be a struggle for survival. When they approached the crash site, Lea was surprised by how many armed SOLDIERS stood guard around the crater "What the hell?" he raised a brow.

'Let us see it!" a man cried, a large crowd had formed, coming to see the meteor.

"Stay back! Order of President Shinra!" a SOLDIER declared.

Lea snorted. Oh, so now that asshole owned holes in the ground? On his bloody fucking grave. "Shh" he gestured to Reno who nodded. The older Maero brother managed to get around the guards and reach his hand right under the caution tape, picking a small, delicate, beautiful flower. Lea had to admit he never remembered seeing a flower grow wild anywhere, nor green grass like that that now grew around the crater.

"Check it out, Bro" he grinned holding the flower up to Reno once they were a safe distance away from the crater and guards.

"It's a flower!" Reno gasped and took the little plant. "Is it ours, Lea??"

"Course it is" Lea nodded. After all, who the hell said Shinra got to own_ all_ the pretty things?


	6. Fate

Author's note: Ok, I lied. One more chapter till the action. I decided this would be neat to put in, to correspond with eventual events in 'Reorganized'. There's also a lack of Reno, I apologize. Action next chapter, I promise! Also, inspired by the song 'Until the End' by Breaking Benjamin. Lots of Foreshadowing in this chapter about a future romance/relationship in regards to 'A mother's sin' and 'Reorganized'. I guess my ulimate goal was to show how human Lea is, how he suffers and such, blah, blah, blah. Anyway, yeah, next chapteraction. I swear. Enjoy.

"Ah-choo!" Reno sneezed.

"Whoa! Watch where ya aim that thing!" Lea teased as he dodged the barrage of boogers. "Guess ya weren't over that cold after all, yo"

"I-I am so!" the little red head whined as coughs racked his entire body.

"Shh. Hey relax, got me? I believe ya, it's just from sleepin' with yer mouth open like ya always do. Dries your throat out and makes it scratchy" Lea nodded "I'm gonna go out and get ya some medicine, alright?"

"But Lea!" the little boy protested flailing his arms madly "We gotta go to work!"

"Nah, one day wont kill us. Ludro took care of food with the doggy bags, remember?" he pointed to the stash in their closet "Besides, I'll snatch a few wallets on the way, alright?"

"We don't have the money for medicine" Reno pouted, giving another mighty sneeze.

"For you Reno, there will always be money for medicine" Lea affirmed while holding a tissue to his brother's nose "Now get some rest alright?" he smiled and tucked him in under the thick blanket they had yet to return to their wonderful parents.

"Ok" Reno sighed, curling up into a massive ball of red headed cuteness that made Lea's teeth want to rot, it was so sweet.

With that Lea softly shut the bedroom door and strode through the living room. When his hand fell on the knob, he froze.

"Where ya goin', boy?" the drunken croon of his father boomed.

"Out" he replied sharply. "Don't hurt yourself pretendin' to care"

"Sorry if you got the impression, asshole" Snyder narrowed his eyes "Seen your whore of mother?" he took a long swig of his long necked beer.

"You checked in the neighbor's bed?" Lea snorted "Anything else?"

"If yer goin out, get duct tape to shut that little fucker's mouth, his coughin' kept me up all night. If ya don't I'll just use the staple gun" He growled then reclined on the couch, pulling his beanie over his eyes.

"…." Lea could _feel_ the heat rising off his skin. Impulsively he grabbed a rather sharp shard of broken glass from the floor and approached the back of the couch, his entire body shaking with rage. It skeeved him off when anyone threatened Reno, but what was worse was the very reality of the threat. The fact that it very well_ could_ happen was enough to provoke instincts in him that Lea tried to suppress.

He raised his hand high above the now snoring form of his father, knuckles white from the grip he held on the glass. Why was he hesitating? Do it, get it over with, end both their misery.

No.

The red head set the glass down on the floor and quickly left the house, breathing in the still fresh air from the meteor. He wouldn't give that asshole such an easy way out, not when he didn't deserve it. He'd let him live, let him _suffer_ just like the rest of them.

Lea wasn't sure when he had started running, probably when the tears started to roll over his healed, scared cheeks.

It was impossible to show weakness around Reno, he had decided a long time ago. To do so only affirmed how bad things actually were and that they were getting _worse_. Ludro had offered them the chance to leave, but Lea wasn't ready and he had no idea why.

Who the hell was he kidding? He knew. Some small part of him clung to the idea that one day he would come home and things would be alright. His mother would be baking cookies and his father would be bouncing Reno on his knee while reading the paper, instead of doing what the normally did: Drink, fight, and shoot up.

The Maero tripped, face first into a puddle with a loud splash! The oil soaking his face and staining his already tattered clothing. It was then the sobs shook from him freely without restraint. Unable to control himself Lea scurried into an alley to the refuge of a large card board box where he hugged his knees to his chest.

"Pull yourself together, fucker" he hissed beneath his breath "No reason to be so damn emotional"

_Lair_, he heard himself think _there's all the reason to cry, to give up, to be so miserable and let yourself drown, just like your parents_

It was a voice Lea had realized, that drove his parents down their paths of self destruction. And it terrified him. How easy he could sneak one of their needles and end his hold on trying to provide a clean, healthy role model for Reno that was ultimately unattainable.

"Are you alright?" a soft voice shook him from his thoughts.

"H-huh??" with a startled blink Lea looked up to see a blonde woman hunched down beside him, her blonde hair was cropped just above her shoulders. He noted how expensive her clothes looked and wondered what the hell she was doing in his part of town.

"I saw you fall" she explained while gently stroking his shoulder. She paused, offering a ghost of a smile "Are you hungry?" the woman stood and offered him her hand.

For a moment Lea was conflicted. He wanted to run, to scream, to smack her flat on her ass and kick oil in her rich face. But another part him heard the emptiness in her somehow sincere tone. Her eyes, though beautifully enhanced with all shades of blue, showed nothing but a vastness he could not fathom.

"My name is Lea" he offered after a moment, reluctantly taking her hand and stood up.

"I am Nelera" she replied softly. "It is a pleasure to meet you Lea. Is there something specific you would like to eat?" she asked without releasing his hand.

"I…" he paused, glancing down their overlapping palms. Why was his heart beating so fast? "Anything is fine"

"Alright" Nelera offered him a small smile and lead him out of the alley, not letting go of his hand. It was amazing, the fact she didn't seem to care that he was so below her in terms of society and was willing to hold his hand.

He also noticed that _huge_ rock on her finger. Some rich bastard was a lucky man. On the golden band, he noted the engraved letter 'S'. Hm.

They chit chatted about simple things, the weather mostly, it was the only thing they seemed to have in common on the surface.

"Hold up" Lea said as her released her hand "you like flowers?"

Eyeing him for a moment, Nelera allowed herself to smile a little "I love flowers"

"Alright, stay here, yo" he grinned and bounced to the street corner. Nelera watched him curiously as he tapped on the booth wall "Yo! Gainsborough!"

"What do _you_ want?" a young man growled, poking his head up from behind the counter, his pink hair splotched with some potting soil.

"Railuma, where's yer sis?" Lea raised a brow "I need some flowers, dumbass. Why the hell else would I come knock 'round here?"

"To look at _my_ pretty face?" Railuma mused giving his layered locks a toss "Who're they for?" Lea pointed to the blonde in he distance. "So, you like older women huh?"

"Are you gonna be a dick, or sell me some damn flowers?' Lea narrowed his eyes and tossed down a few notes, more then enough needed to pay for the order.

"Hmm" Railuma tapped his chin "I rather like doing both, but since you seem to be in hurry.." he reached down and pulled up some white lilies from beneath the counter and wrapped the stems.

"Perhaps you're not as big an ass as I thought, Railuma" Lea mused, only to have a face full of potting soil thrown at him "Ok, I lied, you fucker! Look at me!"

"I'd say it's an improvement" the pink haired ten year old mused "Get going before I call the cops"

"Shut the fuck up, asshole" the red head growled as he walked away, vainly trying to clean his face. When he reached Nelera, he cleared his throat and very blatantly held the flowers up to her. "Since yer buy'in my breakfast an' all.."

"…they're lovely" the woman smiled taking them lovingly into her arms to give them a good sniff. "Thank you, Lea. I love them. Shall we continue on?" she offered him her free hand.

Much to his own surprise, Lea took her hand once more and walked silently along side her. He was absolutely baffled, sneaking little glances at her out of the corner of her eye. Who was this...Nelera? And what, or whom, had left that broken look in her eyes?

"I love this place" she said when they stopped at a little shack by the park.

"Ya do?" Lea raised an unbelieving brow as she ordered a couple of hot dogs. "Can I get two?" one to take home..

"Of course" Nelera nodded and handed them to him. She paced the sidewalk, flowers under her arm until she found a park bench to sit on. "Come sit, Lea" she pat the spot beside her and the red head accepted her invitation.

They sat in companionable silence, eating their food. "How did ya know that place?" Lea finally ventured.

"I used to live here" Nelera replied softly, glancing nowhere but to the ground.

"Really? When? I don't remember seein' ya" the red head blinked, a little amazed anyone would want to come back here.

"Before I got married" she nodded a little, sighing almost disappointingly.

Lea felt a pang of…something, pull at his heart "He doesn't treat you very well, does he?" he asked softly, putting a hand on her shoulder.

Nelera offered her younger companion a small, hollow smile "It could be worse." She started "He's off in Kalm right now, on a business trip. He's coming home tomorrow on the train. When he is home, he stays in his office for the most part. I'm only needed to take care of our children—"

"Wait, time out. Ya got kids? Are you even old enough to be poppin' out babies?" he gasped in horror. Teenaged mother's weren't uncommon, so the fact that this shocked him was baffling.

"I'm twenty one" Nelera shrugged a little 'My oldest is seven, my youngest four" she smiled a little "I love them so much…would you like to see a picture of them?"

Oh, no way in hell, Lea blinked. She had to have been…oh Gods no, what the hell kind of sicko would do that to someone so young?

She saw the conflict in his eyes and further went to explain "I married…far too young. It was a business arrangement then anything" she went on "I'm…not sure what my family got in return…I haven't seen them since"

"I'm sorry" he offered sincerely "I can't say I've had somethin' like that happen, but I know what it's like to feel…trapped" Lea sighed a little, leaning back on his hands, his fingers brushing hers. He quickly pulled his hand away "Can I see yer kids now?"

"Sure, the picture is in my purse" she nodded. "You can get it"

"….me?" he blinked. She trusted him, a little slum street rat, to rummage through her purse. When Nelera nodded, Lea felt some of that agonizing depressing fade away. The fact someone saw him as human, as an equal, was empowering.

Reaching down Lea began to dig through her bag. The whole experience was so surreal. He found the photograph, and beneath it a gun. He didn't remove the weapon, but glanced to her "Protection?" he ventured

"….No" the blonde woman managed after a moment.

"Then…" Lea began to ask, only to have the realization hit him "You were coming back for one last look, weren't you? To say goodbye"

Nelera was shocked at how perceptive this young man was. A single tear rolled down her cheek as she managed to crook out "Yes" beneath her breath.

The red head eyed her for a moment, stunned. "Hey, listen up yo" he started, turning to face her more clearly "Life…ain't no walk in the park" way to go, he muttered "But just throwing away what ya do have is only letting those assholes get the better of you, they _win_ if people like us give up. Sometimes I think about givin' up, too. I get…so jealous sometimes. Why did I have to grow up so fast? Why did I get screwed? I wanna blow my fuckin' brains out" he admitted meekly.

"And what do you do, Lea, when that happens?" Nelera ventured, her eyes meeting his for a locked, mutual gaze.

"I remember how much I mean to someone" was his answer. Glancing down at the photograph, he noticed how much the two blonde boys looked like her "And I can say, that you need to remember you have two people who you mean the world to" he dug in his pockets and pulled out a small throwing knife "I want you to have this" he pressed it into her hand "Carry it with you instead of that gun. If ya ever really wanna do yerself in, you'll have to cut through all the skin with the blade, and believe me it'll discourage ya," _and you can remember be_ he wanted to tag on.

Glancing down at the blade, the blonde woman noticed the words 'Savage Nymph' engraved across the blade. It must be the name of the brand, or the actual knife.

"Tell me, Lea" Nelera mused with a small sincere smile, tears stinging her eyes "How does such a sweet boy like you survive in the slums?"

"Bustin' my ass" he shot her his own grin and handed her the picture. "What're their names?"

"This one is Rufus" Nelera beamed as she ran her finger over the younger child in the picture "And his brother, Seifer"

"Heh, nice names, better then 'Lea'. Sounds like a girl's name" he snickered. Suddenly he was engulfed in a loving embrace that threw him off guard. "Wha.."

"Thank you, Lea" Nelera whispered into his ear, hugging the boy tighter.

"I…for what?" he was a little stunned, the gears in his mind refusing to turn.

"For…" she wasn't sure herself. For a moment she squeezed his hand then stood, pulling away. Collecting her bag, she offered him a beautiful smile, something almost real. "I need to pick up my boys from school. Be good, Lea"

Lea couldn't find his voice. Her smile, was absolutely stunning. He blinked, feeling his finger gripped around something quite large. Unwrapping them from the object his eyes nearly popped out of his skull. Placed firmly in his palm was a_ huge_ wad of bills, biggest he'd ever seen. It easily rivaled a quarter of his stash all on it's own. It brought him so much closer to his goal of eventually leaving. Still had a long way to go, but this…

"Hey!" he cried when he looked up and saw her turn to glance at him. Something new was residing there with him. A feeling of confidence, dare he say pride in himself?

"Will I see you again?" he asked lamely.

They both knew the other knew the answer. Of course not. This meeting had been by chance and already tested the threads of fate. Nelera walked back over to the bench and stood in front of him. Glancing up at her, Lea gulped, his chest felt far too small for his lungs suddenly.

Nelera bent down to leave a brief, gentle kiss across his parched lips. Everything about was wrong, she knew, but at the moment, she didn't care. It was a testament to their meeting, something to keep their little secret sealed "Maybe in the next life" she smiled and straightened "Good luck, Lea"

And then, she was gone.

Why was his heart beating so fast? Why were his thoughts mushed together and incoherent? Something coarsed through Lea's body, a feeling of power, feeling of…life. He felt_ alive_. His first kiss, as brief as it had been, was beautiful by his standards, and that was something not even an asshole like Shinra could own

For a long while, Lea sat on the bench. When a cold breeze ruffled his form, he remembered he had to get the medicine Reno needed. "Oh shit!" he snarled under his breath. Standing, he went to leave, but paused to glance back the bench and muttered "Good luck, Lady"

Left standing in the wake of crossed paths, was a fresh carving on the splintered wood of the bench.

L+N.


	7. Clouds come rolling in

Author's note: Bring on the action :) If the events here are confusing, I would suggest popping over to 'A Mother's Sin' and reading chapters 12-18. Also, keep in mind this IS AU, so somethings may start seeming a little obscure, it all coincides with AMS, so yeah. Enjoy!

"Whoa! Lea slow down!" Reno flailed the next morning as his big brother nearly drug him across Midgar. "Why we goin' to the train station, anyway? I thought you said it was hard to get a hit there?" he tilted his head, confused. He had gotten his medicine the night before and was feeling much better.

At first Lea considered lying, then he thought of other excuses he could use before he just came right out with it "I wanna see someone, that's all"

"Oooooh, is it Nelera?" Reno grinned.

Lea screeched to a halt and glanced over his shoulder "How'd ya—" he started.

"You were talkin' in yer sleep" the littler red head nodded fiercely. "You kept sayin 'I'm sorry Nelera'. What are you sorry for Lea?"

"I…it's complicated" the older boy sighed before shaking his head "Come on! We have to hurry!" he urged. Only one train came from Kalm and it came at noon, which meant they head about ten minutes to book it the remaining distance.

The oldest Maero huffed. Goddamn his ankle hurt like a bitch and he was wasting time that he could be using to his days haul. But he wanted to see this 'husband' Nelera had spoken of. He wanted to see the sick fucker who could so easy break someone's spirit just for fun.

"Ow! Lea!" Reno huffed trying to keep up with his brother's long strides "You're squeezing my hand too tight! Slow down!"

With a snort Lea hoisted Reno up on his shoulders "Hold on" he muttered as he picked up his pace.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity they reached the station where a crowd of people made it nearly impossible to navigate. "Can ya see anything, Reno? Anyone gotten off the train yet?" Lea asked. Glancing around he spotted some railing and after squirming through the crowd, managed to climb it so he could see and Reno had a better view.

"I didn't see anyone" Reno shook his head.

Reporters and other representatives of the media had crowded around a certain car's exit, awaiting patiently with their cameras for the door to open. So, some big shot was on the train, hm? Lea snorted and glanced to the side.

_Oh look,_ he thought to himself, _It's one of those Avalanche guys, they're friggin awesome, wonder what he's got in the box…._

Avalanche. Train with big shot. Box. The cogs began to turn in Lea's brain.

Oh shit.

"Oh Gods…oh Gods, oh Gods" Lea panicked beneath his breath. Hastily he climbed down from the railing, nearly tripping and killing himself and Reno in the process. "We gotta go Reno, we gotta go right now"

"But why?" the boy tilted his head "Oooh, look!" he whispered and grinned, reaching for an unsuspecting purse.

"No Reno we have to get out—" Lea tried to reason. His statement was cut off with loud explosion that shook the very ground they walked on.

Both boys fell to the ground on impact, Reno instinctively curled up into a ball and covered his head, and Lea proceeded to shield him from the rubble. "Don't move!" he whispered urgently to his brother. If they tried to get up they could easily get trampled or worse, separated.

Something hot scorched Lea's back. Glancing behind him the red head's eyes widened when he saw the flames shooting out of the train car. Which was worse? Being toasted or trampled?

Well Damn.

"Time to go" he said more to himself as he sprung to his feet. "Hang on to me and don't let go!" he said firmly as he took Reno's hand, not having time to hoist him up.

"Gotcha, yo!" Reno nodded and pulled his goggles up over his eyes as if he were some pilot ready for launch.

With that Lea darted through the crowd, weaving in and out of the panicked civilians, armed SOLDIERS, and the under cover Avalanche agents that were coming out of the wood work. He wanted to stop and admire them, to ask them questions, to be _one_ of them. But he'd have to indulge in that little fantasy later.

"Ooooh!" he heard Reno gasp. Unable to resist Lea paused and looked over to see what looked like a banquet table still stacked with food sitting out by the payphones. Probably for the scattered camera crew.

No, no. They needed to run and get the hell out before they were trampled, burned, or otherwise maimed. But damn, his instincts were kicking in. Pulling Reno along Lea proceeded to grab a plastic bag and stuff it with edibles until it threatened to burst.

"One for me" he handed picked up a donut for the 'trip "And one for you" and handed one to Reno "Good job, Squirt" he grinned now back to pulling Reno along.

'Hehe, I learned from the best!" the little boy cackled.

Unfortunately Lea only managed to go a few yards ahead when Reno stopped again"Lea!" the little one squeaked"What's up, Reno?" Lea turned to glance at his brother, a hint of exasperation edging on his voice."Look, it's someone like me, yo!" Reno smiled in delight as he pointed.Both boys stopped and Lea tilted his head.Before them was a small blonde haired boy with bright blue eyes, tears streaming down his face. He looked a bit scuffed up as he glanced around, sobbing and calling for his mother. It was a common sight, a boy without his parents .

Something about this boy was different. Reno broke away from Lea and sat down in front of the boy as he glanced up, scuttling away slightly, as if he were afraid.

Fuck, he didn't have time for this. He wasn't some charity case who could take in strays like Braig did. They had to get out, NOW.

"Hey, yo, you okies?" Reno asked the blonde while fiddling with his goggles.

"Um..." the blonde sniffled.

"What's yer name?" Reno insisted with an adorable tilt of his head, completey oblivious that the station was coming down around them.

"C-Cloud..." the blonde boy meekly replied

"HI CLOUD!!" the little Maero smiled.

"Reno, stop, you'll scare him." Lea scolded gently.Cloud wailed.Lea sighed.Reno began to wail.

"HOLY SHIT!" Lea screamed when he was nearly flattened by a piece of sheet rock that gave way from the ceiling "Time to go, folks!" he snatched both the boys up and balanced them on his shoulders.

'HALT!!" he heard someone shout from behind him. Lea turned to see an armed SOLDIER pointing a rifle right for his head.

Lea was frozen like a deer in the headlights, his eyes wide and his mouth hung open, bottom lip almost quivering in fear. He remembered another time when a gun had been pointed at his head…

"Maero!!" a familiar voice snarled. "Get your ass outta here NOW!!" Braig demanded shooting him a deadly glare before vanishing back in the flames.

"Lea! Run Lea!" Reno insisted, shaking his brother. He didn't understand, Lea had never been afraid before! "RUN LEA!" Reno demanded giving his brother a mighty kick in the ribs like a he were a race horse.

Snapping from his trance Lea darted up the steps of the train station and down the street. Vaguely he could hear the sound of boots slamming against the pavement in pursuit of him. Oh shit, he was screwed now.

"Where'd he go?!" one Soldier barked to the other as they came to a halt on the sidewalk.

"Probably hopped the fence in the alley or some shit" he snorted "Think he was part of the Renegades?"

"Psh, doubt it, did you see the look on his face?" the other sneered, slinging his rifle over his shoulder "Those kids are worse then AVALANCHE."

"Well, Shinra's been banking on some information and he's found their hideout, he's just waiting till the right moment to give the word"

Their voices faded off into the distance as they gave pursuit of the three boys they had chased from the scene. Unbeknownst to them, they had been, literally, on top of them.

"….." Lea sat with wide, terrified eyes, afraid they'd look down and see them sitting beneath the grating of the sewer vent. He had his hand clamped over Cloud's mouth to try and keep the boy's sobs down, and the other was over Reno's. (only because his beloved brother could occasional be a bit of a loud mouth at the worst possible time)

Oh shit. They knew. _Shinra _knew, and now he knew. Lea shuddered. Braig may have been an ass, but he saved him now, despite everything, and had in the past bent over backwards for him. Despite how ruthless Lea wanted to be, he couldn't shake his loyalties.

This meant he had to go back to the 'Lions den' so to speak and tell him. Great. Just fucking lovely. Once he was sure it was clear Lea pushed the grated top off the vent and climbed out, then hoisted Reno and Cloud up behind him.

Ducking in the alley to rest inside from cardboard boxes, the older male settled down near Cloud and Reno managing to calm both boys down...somehow. He didn't even know how he did it, but he did.

"Hey, kiddo, where's your mom?"

"She's...she's...I-I dunno..." Cloud sniffled, giving a violent cough.

"Where is she _gonna_ be?" Lea couldn't leave this kid by himself, not to say he didn't want to. He had a lot on his plate already. Maybe this would earn him some karma with the Gods.

"Um...umm..." Cloud began to cry again.

Lea observed him for a moment before giving a defeated sigh "Look, kiddo, how about you stay with us tonight and we'll bring ya where you wanna go tomorrow?"

Cloud stared at Reno and Lea.Lea managed a grin and deciding to not take no for an answer, he scooped up both Cloud and Reno and began to head to his home.

Seeing that the coast was clear Lea lead the boys inside, totting the bag of food to the closet where it would remain hidden.

"Here, Cloud" Reno offered the little blonde the nice blanket, making sure to wrap it around his shoulders "Here's a pillow, too" he smiled and laid his guest down "I'm a doctor! I'll take care of you"

"…." Cloud merely sniffled at Reno and huddled up in the blanket.

"Lea he don't look too good, yo" the little red head pouted "He needs water"

Great. "Give him mine" Lea bit out almost resentfully. No way would Reno dehydrate on the behalf of another little brat. The Gods owed him mega points for this. "Reno, listen up" Lea crouched down beside his brother "I gotta go out for a bit and I gotta go alone. No matter what happens you stay in this room, got it memorized?"

Reno nodded, giving a little salute "Uh huh, yo!"

"Good. I'm counting on you" Lea meeped his nose "I'll be back soon. I love ya" he added, seeing as it may very well be their last time speaking to each other.

Lea pulled on his hoodie and built up his courage. Who was he to cower? He was Lea Maero! Infamous thief and ruthless little bastard, fuck Braing, he wasn't afraid.

….ok, he was shitting his pants, but no one needed to know that.

The red head crawled through the fence and crossed the junk yard with the greatest of ease, each of his steps bringing forth new anxiety. He descended the tunnel, rang once, knocked twice, and waited.

"….Braig said to expect you" a dark haired young man growled after answering the door.

"Dilan..please…" Lea was not above begging.

"Lucky for you everyone is asleep from such a hard mission" he snorted, flicking his dreadlocks back. "Get your ass back there before I snap you in two, Maero"

"Fuck you" the red head snarled back, making sure to take his time walking back to Braig's office. He knocked on the door and entered when he heard a 'come in' on the other side.

"Well look what the dogs dragged in" Braig snorted, shooting Lea a glare with one eye since the other once was covered with a patch.

"Dude…what happened?" Lea gasped, tapping his own eye socket.

"Fucking SOLDIERS" the older boy snarled "What do you want?"

"Look, I know we had a fallin' out and you totally deserved that mark I gave ya, but listen Braig. Shinra knows where this place, he knows what you're doing and he's coming after you" Lea warned "I over heard those SOLDIER bastards talkin' bout it"

"Liar" Braig dismissed "he's got bigger problems"

"No, Braig listen—" he tried to insist.

"You listen, Maero!" the older boy shot to his feet "When you took off, decided you were too good for us, what you say don't matter anymore. You're as good as dead and I should'a let them fucking take you out back at the station. Get Out"

"….fine" the red head muttered, too exhausted to fight. He went to the door and let his hand hang on the knob "Ever hear of a guy named Ludro? He offered me a job with him, but I said no." and with that he left.

"…fucking Maero" Braig sighed, flopping in his seat. He knew Lea was good, he also knew Lea was best when Reno was around. As a pair they were the best thieves anyone had seen. Ludro himself was a well known conartist. If he had offered lea a job, it would have crippled the Renegades operations.

"Those damn Maero brothers" he growled "Have to act all noble"

Bastards.

………………………….

"He ain't doin' too good, Reno." Lea muttered under his breath when he woke the next morning.

"Is he gonna be okies, yo!?" the little red head pouted.

"Well, he made it through the night." the older Maero pointed out optimistically "That's gotta account for something, right? Probably because he had an excellent doctor" he grinned a little.

"Let's try n' find his mommy?" Reno suggested with a nod then smiled "Heh, I am a good doctor! Aren't I Cloud?"

The two red-headed brothers glanced down at Cloud, who looked quite pale. He let out an adorable sneeze. Cloud seemed to be very dependant on his mother as he had been crying for her all fucking night long. He wondered what this mother was like, too. Hm.

"Where's your mom?" Lea asked as he pat the blonde's head.

"T-T..." Cloud's eyes were blood shot and his clothes weren't keeping him warm. Damn, if they didn't find his mom, the kid might die. That was something Lea didn't want on his shoulders, let his mom deal with it. "T-The big...building."

Big building. Ok then.

There were a lot of big buildings, like the Tower and the crapped out hotels and such. Well, they were motels, not hotels, because they were shitty and probably carried all sorts of disease. It was impossible to walk barefoot in the slums and that's why Lea always stole shoes.

"Which big building?" Lea asked, patting Reno's head.Reno looked confused, as usual.Cloud stared blankly at the two brothers. He had been so miserable all through the night. The poor kid threw up a few times, too and hadn't gotten better.

"S-Shinwa..." the blonde managed through a small sniffle.

Wonderful.

Shinra. He had to bring the kid back to the Shinra building? Wait, that would mean, if this kid were telling the truth...

CHA-CHING.

A smirk came to Lea's lips. In his eyes Cloud was no longer a little boy, but a big fat dollar sign. Reno didn't have to know his train of thought. "Right then, let's get ya back to yer mommy."

"YAY." Reno clapped his hands, appearing quite the happy. Simple things amused the young Reno. Lea managed a chuckle.

"C'mere, kid." Lea held his hand out for Cloud.Cloud stared a bit more, as if he were afraid. Rightfully so, Cloud WAS afraid. Very afraid. He just wanted his mommy and big brother. He covered his mouth slightly, coughing.

The blonde let out a loud squeak when Lea merely picked up the unwilling boy, rolling his eyes dramatically as he picked up Reno as well. The blonde sniffled a bit more. At least he didn't have to walk. Lea was really debating on making Cloud walk, but he was light enough, he'd carry both boys. Besides, Shinra wouldn't wanna see the kid harmed. Lea smirked.

Money. Money to help his and Reno's sorry asses. Maybe he should give up his clean water more often.


	8. Rewards at high prices

Authors note: I apologize for the delay, I recently lost a close a friend and have been away from the computer. I hope you all enjoy this, long chapter.

Lea carried both boys easily on his back, thank the Gods Reno was light and cloud was small. Psh, who the hell named their kid 'Cloud', anyway? Not that 'Lea' was any better. The red head rolled eyes a bit.

Great. Now he was talking to himself.

"You okies, Cloud?" Reno asked, gently poking the blonde beside him.

"….I want Mother" Cloud sniffled as he buried his face into his tiny, dirt ridden palms "And Sephy"

"We'll get ya to yer mama—" Reno tried to comfort."Mother" Cloud corrected with a snort."Huh?" the smaller Maero tilted his red head in confusion.

"No!" the sickly blonde wailed with exhausted determination "She's_ Mother_!" he insisted.

"Fine. _**Mother**_. Just be quiet, you kids are right behind my ears and I'm gettin' a headache, so shut up, or yer walkin' the rest of the way!" Lea warned in a sharp, serious tone. He jostled them lightly, he was in no mood for this bullshit.

Reno immediately closed his mouth and Cloud glared. He was tempted to bite this big spiked haired dofus, but he didn't feel well enough to walk, especially in a place like_ this_.

Silence surrounded them as Lea trudged on through the desolate streets. He was grateful his ankle had decided to behave and wasn't bothering him (yet). However a speeding car splashed gutter water all over him. Wonderful. Life was a bucket of fucking cherries.

The Shinra building was in sight, and it was fucking huge. It was anywhere and everywhere at once. It could be seen from every point in the city, if he looked hard enough. It was at the top of Midgar, where the skyscrapers kissed the moderately clean area above. How he longed to be up there, in that foreboding icon of Midgar. Why?

So he could tear it down, brick my brick, and burn it to the damn polluted ground it stood on.

Reno let out a small meep, burying his head in Lea's back and muttered 'Scary' beneath his breath. If Lea were Reno, he wouldn't want to look either.

The older red head walked up to the huge, steel double doors and raised a brow. No duh, of course this wouldn't have a door knocker, or even a door bell, not with Avalanche running around. No one was allowed in.

Security cameras sprung to life from the slick, marble walls and shined down on him as if he was in an interrogation. The intercom to the side gurgled and cracked:

"What do you want?" A female's voice echoed from the black box.

"Yeah, lady." Lea shifted, holding up Cloud with one arm, shaking him gently at the cameras "I think this belongs to ya.".

There was a burst of static on the other end and muffled voices, another woman's voice. Stepping out from the doors was a young woman, the most beautiful woman Lea had ever seen.

Even Reno was spellbound by her. Long, silvery-white hair cascaded down her back in soft waves, her crimson eyes were the softest he had ever seen, the most sympathetic, the most anything. Her skin was light aqua blue and she stood, form curved to perfection, arms out stretched.

"Cloud!" she sobbed, immediately taking the blonde into her arms.

"Mother! Sephiroth!" the little rescued boy nearly wailed holding his arms out to her.

Clinging to the woman's legs was another boy, with long silvery hair and pissed off visage, who was glaring at Lea with hauntingly clear aqua marine eyes. That is, until he saw Cloud and ran forward to him. He assumed this to be Sephiroth. For a moment, Lea felt jealous. He wish _he_ had a mom who loved him so much.

And then, Lea froze.

Behind them he could see Shinra who appeared very angry, bothered. There he was, the man responsible for making life a living _hell_, an impossible exercise in survival while padding his wallet.

Lea swallowed hard, clenching his fist behind his back while holding Reno's hand firmly. _Don't blow it_, he thought to himself, trying to keep his temper down.

He wanted his fucking reward.

"thank you..." The woman said, cuddling her boys, before glancing at Lea and Reno. "What're your names?"

"...well," Lea felt compelled to answer her, oddly. "...Lea and this lil' guy here is Reno. Say hi, Reno."

"Hi!" Reno meeped from his hiding place behind Lea's head.

"How cute." The woman continued to smile, regarding the two in front of him. Shinra came to stand by her side.

_That bastard_, Lea thought.

"You brought him back?" Shinra asked with Lea assumed was supposed to be a relieved sigh. Lea knew better. It was an act. He knew players well.

Lea allowed himself to smirk "Yep. We brought him back. Had to go through all the sectors, avoid muggers, and look, got soaked"

Shinra refrained from twitching when he saw Jenova's sympathetic gaze train over Lea's damp form. "Well, then, you deserve a reward, come in." He turned, shuffling back inside and speaking to a few of the ladies at the reception desk.

The woman began to walk in as well, followed by Lea who wanted to scream. She stopped, tilting her head at them both. "I want to give you something for your help, too."

"Really…?" Lea could have bounced in excitement, if he wasn't so mature (for mature, read: bullshit). It seemed today would be a good day after all! Double the reward!

What suckers.

"Jenova." The woman giggled a bit at being called 'lady.' It had been a while since someone regarded her so casual. When the silver-haired boy growled a bit, she pat his head.

"Okay then, Jenova." Lea wouldn't bite the hand that was feeding him at the moment.

Jenova carefully gave Cloud to his brother as she took a step, gingerly placing a hand on Lea's shoulder, as well as Reno's.

Reno stared at her with wide green eyes, as if in a trance. Lea almost pushed her away. She may have been kind but she was in his and his brother's personal space. Then, she closed her eyes and Lea suddenly felt…warm.

In his mind the visions of volcanic explosions flooded every part of his body, leaving a pleasant burning sensation over everyone of his nerves. His eyes widened a bit as he stared at Jenova. Reno actually began to giggle.

"It feels funny!" Reno announced, writhing excitedly in his spot.

Jenova pulled away, a few sparks of green visible from her slender fingertips "I've given you both gifts. Use them well."

Lea stared. Gift? What gift? He just got a gift? Sure as hell didn't seem like a gift, just some pretty-pretty lights and a warm fuzzy feeling.

LAME.

"I have a wonderful idea." Jenova said while patting Lea on head. Lea's eyelid twitched and he once more refrained from pushing her away. Why did she insist on touching him? "While you wait for your reward, why not grab a bite to eat with us?"

Holy shit! This chick gave money AND food? Hell yeah, he was so totally in! There'd be a feast! Lea glanced at Reno, who looked quite excited at the prospect of food.

"Sure, why not. We've LOVE to have some food stuffs with ya, Jeeeenova." Lea accepted the invitation

Jenova giggled and glanced to Shinra. "It won't be a bother, will it?"

"...no, of course not." Shinra grunted inaudibly. "Let them stay."

Sephiroth could be seen grinning at Shinra, while his mother wasn't looking. As they entered, the double doors closed behind them with a startling, metalic pang. Lea felt a little paniced, being trapped in the building was not something he imagined to be a good thing.

He glanced down, however, when he noticed Sephiroth looking up at him. "I like you" the smaller boy mused with a grin. "You piss off Shinra, let's be friends"

"Heh, Sure" Lea offered his own grin and followed behind the adults.

"How're you boys enjoying your meal?" Jenova asked her son's rescuers as she sipped her soup.

"Good yo." Lea nodded, prodding Reno to tear himself away for a moment and to answer her.

"Yeah, yo!" the little red head managed.

Lea was vaguely aware of Sephiroth's staring, but his gaze was more fixed on the blonde, bearded man that sat across from him. He couldn't help his eyes from narrowing a bit. A smirk played about his lips when he noticed how hard mister President was trying to ignore him.

The food was hella good and Reno looked so pleased as he stuffed himself. Lea would have snickered if he weren't eyeing his prey like a hawk. He was more interested in when he was getting his money for saving Cloud's ass.

He was also sizing up the situation. This woman, Jenova, obviously had a soft spot for kids, and had Shinra wrapped around her little finger. If he played his cards right…the prospect nearly made Lea break out into crazed laughter.

_Let the games begin_, he thought.

"You've got a lot of stuff." Lea began in his meekest voice possible, glancing around at the very nice dining room. He made sure to hunch his shoulders in an almost fearful way, which made Jenova's eyes soften immediately.

Perfect.

"Hmph." Shinra responded coldly, not wanting to acknowledge the fact that two street rats were eating with him, but he caught Jenova's gaze. "Well...thank you." He offered a tiny, enraged smile.

"Why don't we show them around later?" Jenova tilted her head, nuzzling the drifting Cloud.

"Yeah, why don'tcha, while your gettin' the money for savin…him" Lea glanced to Cloud "I hope he didn't get sick, we don't really have clean water at home…but we…tried" he sighed.

"Yes. No..water? You poor thing…we'll take care of you" Jenova smiled brightly "Your little brother can play with Sephiroth."

Reno squeaked.

Lea almost sighed, but nodded. He glanced across the table to judge Shinra's expression and calculate his next move. His green eyes caught a glimpse of something familiar. A golden band hugged Shinra's finger, engraved with the letter 'S'.It stopped Lea dead in his tracks

His heart began to race and his lungs felt like they were going to explode. He had seen that ring before, or one very much like it.

_Nelera_…

Slowly he locked eyes with adversary, fire burning in his gaze, and raised a brow. Lea had to play his cards carefully

"Where's your wife?" he asked finally, being sure to sound meek. He thought Shinra was going to fly over the table and strangle him.

"Wife?" Jenova tilted her head and glanced to Shinra and confirmed Lea's suspicion. This woman wasn't from anywhere near here, and the customs were foreign so she had no idea what his ring had symbolized. "You're married?" she asked, stunned.

"I...was..." Shinra played up, a sad look crossing his features as he struggled for a perfect lie "I am a widower" he sighed, rubbing his eyes, sneaking a pissed glance at Lea.

"I...am so sorry" Jenova sympathized. Sephiroth shot Lea a questioning look which Lea ignored.

"That's too bad, yo" the red head pressed on "How'd she die? Did ya have any kids? People die in the slums all the time, kids get left without parents"

"It hurts too much to talk about" Shinra muttered under his breath.Lea sensed it, the anger stewing around Shinra. Lea reveled in it. He nearly had him caught and fucked up whatever plan he had been trying to pull over on Jenova.

The older red head glanced to Reno, who was avidly playing with his food as well as eating. Yum. It'd be nice to have this kind of food all the time…

………………………………..

Jenova put Cloud to bed early, a bit before dinner ended. Reno gave shifty eyes, managing to pilfer all the food he could grab while the maids took the plate away, just in case. Lea beamed in pride at his little brother as he stood, pushing his chair in and then helped Reno in the same similar action.

Jenova had returned to stand near the two boys. "Well, how was dinner?" she smiled sweetly at them.

"Great, probably the best I've had in a while, yo." Lea merely grinned.

"Yo!" Reno chirpped, clapping his hands a few times in his delight.

"We should give them their reward now" Jenova tilted her head at Shinra in a cute little gesture.Shinra merely gave a canjoling smile. The smile of a lying weasel. Lea could see right through it, as long as he'd get his damn money and make off with his food…

"Yes...we'll...give them their reward." The President nodded and revealed a large bag from behind his back.

"Oh, how about we take a tour, too?" Jenova smiled, glancing fondly at the two red heads.

"YEAH. Me n' Reno over here would like that." Lea continued to grin, allowing his eyes to shine.

"Yeah!" Reno mimicked his brother by grinning.Shinra handed the money over, begrudgingly. Lea could see that penny-pinching face turn into something glaringly evil that Jenova blissfully missed. It was amusing and it was like Shinra was dying inside as he handed over the gil. Reno squeaked at the amount there was in Lea's hands at the money.

It was the most he had ever seen, the most many people in Midgar had ever seen as well. His eyes were wide as he clung to his big brother's side, poking at the money. Lea grinned slightly, letting his brother hold a few pieces from the large lump sum he had been given. Reno was quite pleased, too, holding up the shiney piece. Jenova smiled softly, glancing to Shinra.

"Well aren't we goint to show them around now? I'm sure they'd like to see and it's the least we could do for them."

"Yeah. The least we could do." Shinra's enthusiasm was _amazing_.

The tour officially began, Jenova lead the boys around, with Lea having a leash on Reno, just in case. Reno might accidentally wander off. That was all he needed, in a place like the Shinra Building, where he knew President Shinra was already pissed in more ways than one. Reno needed to be at his side at all times.

Lea had to admit, the place was a pimp's dream. A place Shinra didn't fucking deserve, but a nice place all the same. The walls were white, painfully so, and clean. Shinra chatted rather flatly, his shoulders sunk in and Jenova was chittering more brightly.

Lea liked listening to her more than Shinra. They moved through the halls and Lea spied boring artifacts, historical items and other shit that just wouldn't get him any money on the black market. No one gave a fuck about the past. Absolutely no one. They wanted money, drugs, statesship and a way out of the hell hole they lived in. Then, Lea saw something.

His green eyes widened as they feasted on the prized piece upon the mantle of the room they passed. It was a GIANT sapphire, the bluest thing he had ever seen. It was dark, indigo with a few aquamarine flecks dancing along it's surface in the light. It had to be the biggest gem stone he'd ever seen.

Lea wanted it.

"Ya know," Lea began. "With all this stuff ya got, maybe ya should give some to the poor, yo." He said slyly, grinning a bit maliciously at Shinra. "And, where's the bathroom, Reno has to go"

"I…do?" the little red head blinked, only to receive a subtle jab in the ribs. "Oh, yeah! I do!" and he began to dance in place "Reeeeeeally bad!"

When Shinra was about to speak, Jenova clapped her hands "Oh, yes, they certainly need it more than we do. We could give it all away! And the bathroom is right in the lounge" she gestured to the room with leather furniture and the mantle "We'll wait here for you"

Shinra wanted to kill Lea once more.

But Lea merely kept his calmness, formulating the slickest of slick plans in his head. Taking Reno's hand he lead him into the room.

"Go pretend to use the bathroom" Lea instructed just above a whisper "Tinkle, flush, and wash your hands, even if ya don't gotta, force yourself" when Reno nodded, Lea watched as he entered the bathroom. Soon as the door closed, the older red head dashed to the mantle.

When he was sure no one was in sight, he snagged the blue sapphire and dumped it in the bag with his gil.

"Did everything come out all right?" Jenova teased when the two boys returned.

"Sure did!" Reno grinned.When the tour finished up Lea carried Reno on his back. He was shown the way to the exit, personally, by Jenova and Shinra.

"That's all. Hope you enjoyed it." Shinra sneered a bit as he glanced to the two red-heads.

"You'll have to come back some time. You can play with my children." Jenova chirped with a sincere smile.

Yeah. Right. Play with the children.

Lea nuzzled his brother, carrying doggy-bags of food, along with some heavier rewards, such as the money. "We'll be going now. Thanks, yo." And the red-head started off.

The doors closed behind him with the same forboding sound as they entered with and sudddenly the streets looked all the more...dangerous, a trap they were never going to get out of. Lea glanced back up at the tower, his thoughts straying to something else.

He walked on in silence, he could hear Reno dozing on his back. Good, the Squirt had a long night playing doctor. However, Lea felt like his chest was caving in, and found it hard to bask in the innocent glow of his brother.

Slowly his body began to shake as he walked, the strength leaving his arms and legs as he bit his bottom lip till the point it bled with his frustration. The sidewalk was no longer a clear path, but something blurry and unseen through the cloud of tears brimming his eyes.

Lea wasn't quite sure what had happened, all he knew was now he was on his knees, huddled in some alley with Reno standing worridly beside him.

"Lea..?" the little red head shook him "What's wrong, yo..?"

"I..I.." Lea couldn't even answer, he didn't really know why he was crying. Nelera...that FUCKER..he was the one who...oh Gods...Lea sobbed once more. His first kiss, had been from Shinra's wife, why, why did such a horrible man...have all the pretty things?

"Lea!" Reno gasped, but this time out of horror "Look!!" and pointed out towards the horizon.

"What is it, yo?" the older red head managed to pull himself together and glance to where Reno had been pointing.

In the distance, large, billowing smoke cloud snaked their way into the sky. For a moment Lea was confused, until he concluded where the fire was originating. The junkyard.

"Oh shit!" he collected their bags "Braig!" snatching Reno up onto his shoulders, the red head sprinted off.

What was once looking like a brighter future, went up in flames.


	9. A Fire Within

Author's note: I've had my time to mourn, it still hurts but time heals all wounds. I'm going to be updating regularly again. Hopefully once a week (if not more, but I don't want to push it) and I apologize to my readers for my irregularity and lack of…anything. I hope you continue to enjoy A Tale of Two Brothers :) I would have uploaded this Saturday (the 25th,) but was experiencing technical problems that have only now been resolved. I hope this next chapter pleases you.

.Bold font signifies a flash back.

…………………………………

Lea huffed, the heels of his sneakers smacking thunderously against the wet ground. Vaguely he registered Reno's questions flying passed his ears, and for a moment felt bad that he had left his little brother clueless. But to stop and explain it to him, would cost them valuable time.

His stomach wretched, some bad shit was about to hit the fan, Lea concluded. This was just the beginning. He didn't know why he was thinking all these crazy conspiracy thoughts, but he knew damn well to go with his instincts. It was over.

They were out of time.

It was either get out of Midgar now, or rot forever in the gradual decaying city. He wondered briefly about the other continents of Gaia. Spira was a world power, why didn't it step up to the goddamn plate and knock Shinra off his high horse?

Pansy ass bitches, Lea snorted.

The older red head turned sharply into the familiar alley way, the soles of his shoes caught the mud and he slid "WHOA!!"

"Weeee!" Reno laughed, clapping happily as Lea's grip on him tightened.

"Uff!!" Lea grunted when he slammed into a brick wall, unable to stop any other way.

"Let's do that again!" his brother giggled from his shoulders.

"Oh yeah, loads of fuckin' fun" the older red head winced, shaking off the pain. Gently he plucked Reno from his shoulders "Listen to me Squirt. If I tell you to run, whatcha gonna do?"

"I'm gonna run!" Reno nodded, the goggles hanging around his neck jerking a bit with his action. With a bright smile, he looked up at Lea and wrapped his tiny hand around his big brother's.

Lea allowed himself to smile as he stared lovingly down at his brother. It was safe to say that Lea loved the 'Squirt' with everything he had, and in a lot of ways, it had kept him from falling into the darkness of slum life. Drugs, whores, and drinking. He wouldn't have had the strength to try and be better without Reno, and he knew it.

He wouldn't lose him now.

"That's right, run like hell" the older boy affirmed with a nod.

Taking a deep breath to settle his nerves Lea pulled back the fence board, his sea green eyes widening at the sight before him. The junkyard, had become a graveyard.

Riddled amongst the burning piles of car parts were the bodies of those Lea once called his friends. Bullet casings littered the ground in a nauseating display of cruelty. How heartless could one man be?

"Hyne.." Lea choked, voice catching in his throat.

"L-lea…" Reno sobbed, covering his eyes with both tiny palms. He made a strangled sound deep in his throat, like he was trying to speak, but all that came was a sob.

Shaken from his terror Lea dropped down to a crouch "Shh, shh…" he wasn't about to lie and say it was 'going to be ok' because it damn well wasn't. He took his little brother into his arms in a tight, loving embrace, as if trying to shield him

After a moment the older red head pulled Reno back to look at him "Listen to me Reno" he began in a soft tone "I know it's scary, and that you don't understand. I don't really understand it either, but we have to look and see if anyone is alive, alright? We'll be the only ones who can help them. I'm gonna need a good doctor, think you can handle it?"

A pensive looked crossed Reno's expression as he took in the words his brother spoke. He was a doctor, he could help. Finally, he nodded "O-ok" he managed, rubbing his eyes.

Giving his own nod Lea slowly stood on his feet. Taking Reno's hand tightly in his own the older boy began to take slow steps through the rubble, cautious incase any SOLDIERS were still lurking around the forbidden corners.

It was sickening. Bodies lay strewn across the oil laden soil, bullet casings scattered in homage to the fallen, and the smell of gun powder and charred flesh was all the older red head could comprehend. Lea had stopped walking, and at some point Reno had squirmed away from his grip. The red head clenched his jaw, it was all Lea could do to keep from screaming, he hadn't even realized Reno had slipped away. He stared out as tears spilled over his scarred cheeks.

The fires of hell were burning before him, and the devil named Shinra had been their source. A gentle breeze caressed Lea's cheek, the long strands of his red hair dancing sadly across his face in attempt to dry his tears.

It was going to be a cold night, and yet so scolding, he could almost _feel _his skin melting away.

"Lea!!" Reno's voice resonated clearly through the muddled crackling of the fire "Lea! It's Braig! He's hurt!"

Snapped from his horrific daydream Lea shook his head. He followed Reno's voice behind some large beetle car, in fact, it had been the one to aid in their escape just days before.

Irony was a bitch.

"Oh Hyne, Braig.." Lea gasped as he laid eyes on the scarred young man.

"N-nice to see you t-too, asshole" Braig winced from where he was pinned beneath a large piece of steel. "A-are y-ya just gonna stand t-there?"

"Oh! Right!" the elven year old found a metal pipe and wedged it between a tire rim and the steel. Using all his nonexistent weight Lea forced the crude lever down, but was an inch shy of allowing Braig to slip out. "Reno" he managed through clenched teeth.

"I'm on it!" the smaller red head saluted briefly. Strapping his goggles over his eyes, Reno jumped on the end of the metal pipe, and in so doing, raised the beam the needed inch (and then some) to allow Braig to slip out.

Braig gasped at the relief his ribs felt. That was going to leave one hell of a nasty scar. He squirmed out from under the beam and laid on his back, panting just slightly to catch his breath.

Lea pushed the steel beam aside and dropped down to sit, leaning back on his palms as he tried to catch his breath. Hastily he pulled Reno into his lap and muttered a "Good job" before clearing his throat "Braig…what…happened?" the older red head finally managed.

"W-what the fuck do you think Maero?!" Braig shrieked, tears spilling from his one functioning eye. The great Renegade leader, Braig, was crying in pain, mourning the loss of his brethren. "S-SOLDIER. They came…got us b-by surprise…t-hey left n-no one…I-I dunno how I s-skipped out.."

The whole situation was so surreal and horrifying for Lea. Since when did Braig have a heart? Since when had he…cared?

He always cared, even if he had been an ass, he always cared. Lea had realized that now. Holy shit. Someone dropped a nuclear bomb on Lea's world. His throat tightened and his body began to tremble. For a moment, silence resonated between the three of them. Until-

"Come with us" the older red head spoke softly.

"Huh?" Braig blinked, forcing himself to sit up a bit.

"Where we goin, Lea??" Reno tilted his head. This was the first time he was hearing about 'going' anywhere aside from home.

"To Nibelheim" Lea nodded firmly, almost convincing himself "To Ludro. I'm sure he'd be more then happy to have you work…with him too, Braig" he had worded carefully. After so many years of working for himself, Lea knew Braig would not happily give up his independence.

"Heh, yeah! It'd be fun" Reno offered as if it were some great consolation.

"Yeah, fun" unfortunately Lea couldn't force himself to share the same sentiment.

Braig's face twisted into that of deep thought, and pain, of course. He was carefully weighing the few options he had. There was no way he could stay here and rebuild what he had worked for his entire life, but what would leaving grant him? His freedom would be lost, but…wasn't it gone already?

"Alright" he conceded with a nod. "I'll go. When ya leavin?" Braig winced, but managed to sit up on his own.

"Tonight" Lea nodded "We're gonna hop the train, so make sure you're there. Think you can make it?"

"I-I'll help him" a fourth, gruff voice growled from the left.

"Dilan!" Reno squeaked, happy to see another one of his former/new comrades alive.

"Oh damn.." Lea jumped up to help pull the rubble of the dark haired young man "You look in better shape then the boss" he offered a small grin.

The humor was lost on Dilan, his sharp silver eyes narrowing a bit in distaste "Shut it, Maero" he warned simply "I'll make sure we get to the train. W-what time?" he winced, wiping the blood from his split lip.

"We'll be there 'round eleven, yo" the older red headed nodded "That's the last train of the night to Nibelheim, and there's less security at that time so we'll be able to hop without much hassle."

"FREEZE! SOLIDER!" an unfamiliar voice ordered. From the array of broken cars and furniture the junk yard started to swarm with Shinra's armed force "Nobody move!"

"RUN!" Braig ordered as he tried to scrambled to his feet, only to find himself held down by the heel to his throat, held there by a SOLDIER.

"Get your filthy hands off you Shinra creeps!!" Dilan snarled, more openly thrashing against the three men that managed to hold him.

"Lea! Lea help!!" Reno squeaked desperately as he found himself being hoisted up and taken away.

Horrifed, the older Maero lunged "No! NO!! Let him go!! He's just a kid!!" he pleaded, only to find himself restrained and being beaten upon as well. "No! Reno!!"

"Let me go, yo! You big meanies!!" Reno growled, biting the hand of the man that held him.

"Ouch! You little asshole!" the SOLDIER snarled, smacking the six year old hard across the face.

As Lea watched that bastard strike his brother, time seemed to slow to a steady crawl. His heart beat picked up pace and strength, threatening to penetrate straight through his chest. In the palms of his hands, he felt a warm tingling feeling, and in his ears, the echo of the words:

**"….I have given you both gifts, use them well…."**

"Whoa, what're you doin', kid?" his capture growled. Lea had begun to shake, his skin warmed and his eyes began to burn with such intensity it made the surrounding fires look cold. Dropping his elbows he slammed them back into the SOlDIER'S ribs, sending him back and thus broke free of the grip.

"I said NO!!" Lea roared. Bright sunset colored flames burst from the embers on the ground, and without really realizing what he was doing, Lea made a motion as if he were throwing a ball at his brother's abuser. In compliance, the flames lunged, attaching themselves to the vest of the SOLDIERS whom attack them.

Amidst the fear of burning to death, the armed gun men dropped not only Reno, but Braig and Dilan. "RUN!" Lea ordered, immediately scooping his brother up "Don't be late either, you motherfuckers!" he snarled "Reno hang on!"

"I'm hangin' on!!" the little red head nodded, clinging to Lea's head.

With a quick nod Lea squeezed through another opening in the fence and darted down the street. What the hell had that been? He couldn't do that before, not that…fire thing. It was the most amazing thing he'd ever goddamn seen.

Was that the gift Jenova was talking about?

Not bothering to stop and think too much on it he shook his head, making haste to their 'home'. Dashing through the door Lea ran to their room and set Reno down and began to shove the few items they'd had (and wanted to keep) into his duffle bag, including his stash from beneath the floor board.

"Come on, get ready" Lea urged his younger brother while double checking their bag.

"Uh, Lea…" Reno gulped from behind the older boy, his voice sounding fearful and shaken.

"Hurry up and put your coat on Reno, we don't have a lot of time. Those guys are gonna be up our asses and we've got to make sure we have plenty of time to get there"

"Go _where_?" the low, distinct growl of Snyder, their father, emanated from the door. Lea instantly froze

"Oh fuck…"


	10. Powers Revealed

Wow, has it been over a year?

I truly want to apologize to anyone and everyone who still has/is reading this fic. I took an unexpected hiatus from the internet altogether. My mother was diagnosed with cancer, as some of you know, I've moved three times, and had multiple set backs. The few times I have gotten on I have not had the desire to anything but check my e-mail. I saw people were still watching, hell, even faving this fic. Then I got an e-mail from a loyal watcher and it kick started my drive again. This story is FAR from over, these brothers have a lot to go through before their story ends, consider this a warm up chapter. I don't want to commit to a time frame, but with things settling down, I will be making the effort to update at least once a month, if not more frequent, if I become lax, please kick me in the butt. My AIM is burningxcascade, please feel free to IM me and kick me in the shins.

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Fuckityfuckfuck.

As profane as it was, that was all Lea's mind was capable of at the moment.

He stared up at the infuriated, intoxicated eyes of his father. He was going to kill him, the boy could see it. Snyder had never been a loving man, not to him, to Reno, or their mother. He only cherished his syringes that took him away from his misery for a few hours. All the pent up rage, it was coming out now. Lea saw it in that tightly bound fist.

Before he even had a moment to react Lea found himself on the ground, being pummeled by the shadow of a man he once called 'daddy'.

"After all I've fuckin' done for ya, ya little snot nosed bastard!!" Snyder snarled at the top of his strung out lungs. "After all I've done, yer just gonna fuckin' leave!! I'll bury your ass in the backyard before I let you leave, boy! If I have to suffer, SO DO YOU!!"

Smash!

Lea gagged as blood began to pool in his throat. Goddamn it, his nose was broken, his eye lids were starting to bruise and swell to the point of closure. He was going to die here…

"Leave him alone you big asshead!!" the small determined voice of Reno demanded.

There was another crashing sound that the older Maero couldn't quite identify, followed by a tense silence "R-reno? Reno!" he called out in the hazy world of their bedroom.

"Up here, Lea!" the small boy waved from the ceiling, the reminisce of a lamp clutched in his hand. Lea stared up at the child, jaw slacked in disbelief.

Well, hot damn. Jenova had made Reno fucking Spider-man. His little brother was crawling on the smooth surface of the roof with no problem, using the pads of his heels and palms for 'gripping'.

"Yo, get down Reno, quick!" Lea snorted as the blood poured from his nose.

"Heh, ok!" Reno giggled and pulled his goggles over his eyes "Catch me, weee!" the boy laughed and allowed himself to plummet from the ceiling.

"Shit!!" Lea cried, flailing to catch Reno with opened arms "Goddamn, don't do that" he scolded lightly, pinching his nose to prevent it from bleeding anymore.

"Lea, we gotta get you to the clinic!" the smaller boy cried, seeing how injured his beloved brother had become. "Dr. Pinkstaff can fix ya right up, yo!". The clinic was one of the very, very few places those who lived in the slums could receive basic medical care, such as setting broken bones and stitches.

"No time" the taller red head snorted, sending surges of excess blood from his nostrils down to the rotting wooden floor "We gotta get to the train, remember? We gotta get outta here while we still can" Lea crouched on his knees for a moment to start bundling Reno up in his over sized jacket and sweater, preparing him for the treck.

"B-but…" the six year old sniffled, his innocent blue eyes growing wide and fearful "W-what about mommy? Lea…I'm scawed.." Reno confessed as his bottom lip began to quiver.

It was at this moment Lea stopped and stared at his brother. He looked so small and fragile, and he was…breaking. The older Maero immediately hugged Reno close to him, stroking the back of his red head as he cried.

"Shh, Shh….Reno…listen, listen to me, yo…" Lea started softly, still holding and petting his brother "We can't help Mom and Pops anymore. They're grown ups, and they gotta live with their bad ideas and bad choices, but we shouldn't have to suffer just cause they ain't got two cents in their brains" he gently pulled Reno away so he could look him in the tear stained eyes

Goddamn, this was some hard shit to handle.

"I know it's scary, Reno. I'm kinda scared too, if ya want the truth" Lea confessed softly "But ya know what? I'm gonna have you there with me, and because'a that, I know in my heart…it'll be ok. We'll make it, and we'll get to sleep in a warm bed with a REAL mattress and blankets"

"And have…t-toys?" Reno sniffled, rubbing the last of his sadness away with his over sized sleeves.

"Hell yeah there will be toys" his older brother smiled and nodded "That'll be the first thing I do with my money, I'll buy you the best toys I can find, but before we do that, we gotta get there, and that means we gotta leave here and we gotta leave here quick before---"

"FREEZE! SOLDIER!" stern voices ordered from the front of the house, the pounding of thick military boots resonating down the hall.

"Come on Reno, come on!!" Lea urged as he nearly tossed his little brother onto his back and slung the duffle bag over his shoulder, which partially held Reno to him.

No, why the hell did his ankle have to start hurting?

Motherfucker.

Lea jumped out his window and landed with a 'thud' on the ground before bolting as fast as his injured body would take him. He cut through all the back alleys and covered his tracks as best as he could in the time frame he had. Before long, soft flurries of pollution ridden snow began to trickle down upon them.

It didn't matter. Nothing matter now. It was just him and Reno and they were so close to freedom that it made Lea want to cry. His brother deserved a better life, a better shot at being…

SOMETHING.

A better shot at not being like him. A slum rat who had to steal, cheat, and lie.

No fucking way. If Lea had any say, Reno would grow up to be a doctor, or better yet, a pilot, so he could see other continents, like Spira. He'd heard it was such a beautiful place…

"Lea watch out!" Reno cried, yanking back on Lea's bright red hair like it were reigns and he were a horse.

"WHOA!!" the eleven year old boy shrieked. He skid across the icey ground, trying to dig his heels in to stop himself before he plowed into some trashcans, but it was too late, he hadn't been paying attention.

WHAM.

Lea found himself flat on his face in the pile of garbage. The smell was the worst damn thing he'd ever experience, the remnants of rotting….whatever, covering his face and clothes. It was too much, it was all too much.

"God fucking damnit.." the boy choked out as he began to sob.

"Wassa matter, Lea??" Reno asked, having managed to hop off his brother's back. He crouched down on his hands and knees and tilted his little head to better look at his brother.

"I can't…I can't do this Reno" Lea choked, tears leaking over his frozen cheeks "I hurt from where that b-bastard beat me, I'm starving, I'm cold and exhausted…I'm…scared"

Any six year old in his position would have been fed by the fires of the uncharacteristic insecurity of their older brother, but Reno did not. Slowly he helped Lea sit up and brushed off his clothes "It's gonna be ok, yo" he stated simply.

Puzzled, Lea couldn't help but forget his misery for a moment and sat back on his knees to stare down at the small child before him "It is?" he asked curiously.

Smiling happily, Reno nodded and reached into the inside pocket of his sea of jackets and pulled out the still living flower they had plucked from the meteor crash site days before and handed it to Lea.

The older boy delicately took the plant, turning it over in his fingertips. The softness of the petal never ceased to amaze him and it was then he realized, that in all his years of seeing Reno as this fragile, breakable human being, he had forgotten about his own emotional mortality. It was impossible for him to take all this by himself, he needed someone…

He needed Reno.

"You can do it, Lea" the smaller Maero boy smiled and leaned up to meep his brother's nose "Got it memorized? Now, let's get to that train!'


End file.
